Faith's Reward
by auntiebyn
Summary: Ellie has been basically alone all her life, but especially alone these past two years. Ever since the world disintegrated into a stinking pile of death and waste. A fateful encounter with an unusual pair opens up her isolated world and reminds her that there are still good people, and that there are still reasons to have faith.
1. Chapter 1

Quiet. It was always quiet now. What she wouldn't give for some ambient noise. A car, an airplane, a train whistle. Something. Now all she heard was quiet. If she was in the wilderness, she heard birds, crickets, rustling leaves. She tended to stick to the wilderness as best she could, it felt comforting, safe, and predictable. Developed areas, not so much. So much had been scavenged, picked through. You might find a roof and four walls to keep you dry or warm, but inevitably, always, you had to leave. Whether it was people, or walkers, something would come, and you would have to move on. That's why she stuck to the wilderness. Especially now. It's been almost two years since it began. Two years of surviving. Two years of losing. Losing possessions, losing family, losing weight, losing hope. When would it be time to start getting things back?

She sighed as she reflected on things. What had brought her here? Her feet. Her stomach. Preservation. From the start, she felt that moving was key. Never settling long, avoiding larger groups. She stayed with one group, for a while. A few months. It worked well, but when it started to crack, it cracked fast. Food, that was the sticking point. People wouldn't stand to starve, but no one knew how to help themselves. So much entitlement. So much from before the fall. Things needed to change. People needed to adapt. She could see that, but the others wouldn't. So she left. Late one night. Packed her meager remains, tossed her satchel across her shoulder, slung her bow over her back. No one would stop her. Anyone that cared about her was long gone. Her Gramps would have been so disappointed in her. Giving up on others was not something he took lightly to. _You give people a chance, you teach them to change, and they will. They need the tools, and if you have some of those tools, you share, you help, you contribute. You don't give in, you don't give up when things get tough._ She had always had a tough time with that, even before all this.

But maybe this was better. She wondered to herself. The quiet. When had she last heard her own voice? It felt like too long. She thought about those days. When she would head to The Fox after work with friends, have a few beers and grab the mic and belt out some tunes. Some said she was good, some asked why she still had a day job. But she had loved her day job. Looking after people. The kids. Being there for people, families, holding hands, easing pain, saying prayers to Gods she didn't believe existed, begging and pleading for some sort of mercy for people who were suffering, being there when someone took their last breath and thinking what a beautiful privilege it was. Nowadays, it was a curse. There was no dignity in death anymore. No beauty in the passing of a soul. Only pain, only fear, only torture. It was hideous and it made her ache. The violent unrelenting anguish of death that exists in this world is unfathomable.

Yes, alone was better. She wasn't ready to let go, but she wasn't willing to watch others lose their battles. Survival and basic self-preservation was hard to turn off, even in the bleak circumstances of today. So she kept on trucking. Solo. Wherever her feet, the weather, the road, her stomach would take her. She wandered through the forest, bow slung over her shoulder, treading softly, watching the ground, aware of her surroundings. It had been two days. Two days since she had seen any wildlife. She heard the birds, fluttering now and then. But her bow skills were not what she wanted them to be to take on a bird in flight. She couldn't risk losing the arrow. She only had a few left. She would have to start making more. She heard a rustling and stopped mid stride, trying to get her bearings. It was to the left of her. Small. Maybe a rabbit. Excitement coursed through her at the prospect. She pulled her bow off her back, and slowly, carefully notched it. She snuck towards a small cropping of bushes, slowly and calculated. She paused, waiting to see if the animal would make an appearance from the bushes, when she first heard it.

Another footstep. Heavy, a man's. She froze mid stance, bow notched and ready, and watched. The rustling continued under the bushes, and then she heard it again, another footstep. Heavy. And then the unmistakable sound of an arrow, hitting its target. She swore internally. She had missed her moment. She ducked behind the bush, and waited. Held her breath, for fear that a breath out would give indication of her presence. It wasn't wise. _Stay hidden, watch, until you know who you're dealing with. Observe. Take notes. Run if needed_. She waited for the hunter to collect his prize. She watched from behind the bush, and that's when she saw him. Glimpses. Tall. Dark. Brown hair covering his face, only a chiseled stubbled jaw exposed. A well-worn jean jacket and leather vest. Cross bow, slung over his shoulder. He was quiet, almost floated over the dry leaves. His companion, not as well. Sure footed, but louder. Also tall, dark haired, but clean cut. No stubble, well groomed. Clean. Looked like he came straight out of a catalogue. A sharp contrast from his friend, who could have occupied any number of garages or sketchy bars. She did a quick scan with her ears and eyes, looking for more of them. Only two.

She let out her breath slowly and shakily. She might be able to handle two, but she didn't want to. She might not need to "handle" them, she reminded herself. They weren't all bad. That inner voice was trying to keep her grounded, realistic even. Naïve maybe. This life, this situation, had really brought out the worst in people. She saw more of that, than the opposite. Faith and optimism were crippling, outdated ideals. That shit could get you killed, raped, tortured. Bad people, and bad things, were everywhere.

She risked another glance over the bush from her spot of cover, and noticed the first man was quiet. Stopped still. Listening. Like he knew she was there. He knew what he was doing. His partner looked at him, recognizing some sign, and paused, surveying the area, his ears perked. Subconsciously, reassuringly, she fingered the knife hooked to her belt. Very carefully she turned around and stood up, revealing her position. The first man whipped his gaze on her, steely blue eyes that froze her in her tracks. His partner froze as well, staring at her with his mouth ajar, shocked to have seen her pop up out of thin air. His expression quickly changed though, and a smile crept over his face. It was warm, welcoming, and friendly. There wasn't much of that these days. They both felt safe, in different ways. Welcoming. Protective. Warm. Strong. All words that popped into her brain, but not powerful enough to turn off the flight or fight instinct that reared its head. She made eye contact with the taller, rugged, dirty man, whose eyes subtly narrowed as he scanned her, almost reading her robotically. She imagined a Robocop vision appearing in front of his eyes, identifying threat from friend. She didn't wait around to see what conclusion he was going to come to. After a moment of brief eye contact with each of them, she turned and bolted in the opposite direction.

She ran until her lungs burned, and then ran some more. She had a general idea of where she was going, she had been tracking these woods for days. Heading south, towards the river where she had last made camp. She could hear the sound of the river to her left after running for what seemed like forever. Her lungs burned with every breath, her calves tightened, sweat poured down her neck. She was not going to let up until she put a good amount of distance between them. She did not want to be followed if she could avoid it. If she came across them again, she would maybe engage with them, but she wasn't taking too many chances these days. The last time she had done that, it had been a huge mistake, and she was extremely wary. So she ran, hopping logs and narrowly avoiding boulders, keeping the stream to her left. She was so focused that she didn't even see it coming. She underestimated the dip in the trail, took a hard fall and twisted her ankle. She let out an expletive as she tumbled to the ground in a heap of sweaty limbs. All of her stuff went flying around her, her satchel opening and spilling its contents.

Again she swore, as she collected herself, breathing rapidly and rocking over onto her butt. Her ankle throbbed, swelling rapidly in her leather boot. She gave herself a moment, collecting her breath and calming her nerves as tremors threatened to overtake her limbs. She reached over and grabbed her water bottle, downing the last of its contents swiftly. Chucking the bottle in her overturned bag, she began to gather up the remaining spilled items. It certainly wasn't much, but it was all she had. A photo, a small amount of food, some arrowheads, twine, bandages, a scarf and fingerless gloves, socks, matches, a flint, a flashlight, and a book. She filed everything back in her satchel methodically, and then felt a sudden moment of panic. Her locket. Where was it? A hard lump formed in her throat as she scanned the area around her. Tears formed suddenly and unexpectedly in her eyes, welling up and threatening to spill over. She frantically scanned the area, but saw nothing. No hint of black or silver. Her heart thrummed in her chest at the thought that she had lost her most prized possession.

Possession, ha. Nothing was a possession anymore. Nothing was forever. You had it for a moment, and then poof it was gone. Memories were the only tangible possessions left in this world. She could not afford to mourn the loss of her locket now, she needed to move. She had already been still for too long. There was a good chance the men had not followed her, but was she willing to take it? She shakily rose from the ground, readjusting her satchel and her bow and quiver. She delicately put weight on her ankle and took a hesitant step. A dull ache shot up her ankle to her calf, and she chastised herself silently. She knew she had crippled herself in more ways than one. She needed to make camp, wrap her ankle and get off it for a few hours, but she was unsure she had put enough distance between her and the two men. Again she chastised herself. She was being paranoid for no reason. There was no indication they even intended to follow her. They had the prize – dinner; she was the one that ran.

She shook her head at herself, and began to limp ahead slowly. The more she walked, the less pain she seemed to have, but she knew once she slowed it would rear its ugly head. Getting her bearings, she decided she would head east towards the area she had last made camp. A few days ago she had come across an old hunter's blind, which had been in place for many years. Weathered slats of wood formed the small hut that was approximately 4'x6'. It had a roof, protecting her from the elements, and a viewing cut out for her to keep an eye on her surroundings. Looking up at the late afternoon sky, she could see clouds forming that threatened rain. It was starting to cool off, the Indian summer had turned to fall, and the nights were getting cooler. Soon she would have to consider making her way back to the closest town and looking for a warmer spot to lay her head. But not yet.

She stopped at the river to fill up her water bottles and wash the dirt off her hands and face. The cool water felt good against her skin after the sweat bath she had just given herself. She took a moment to enjoy the sound of the rushing water and scanned the opposing shore line. Nothing. No wildlife, no people, no walkers. With reluctance to leave the peaceful scene for a more secluded spot, she turned and headed towards the blind, which was about a half a mile east of the river. Her thoughts traveled back to the two men, trying to make sense of why they were by themselves in the middle of this place, but then, why was she? The last group she had run into was a handful of questionable men. They had almost cornered her, but she managed to get away before they completely circled her. She could feel something bad, leeching from them before any of them even opened their mouths. She knew if she didn't run, she wouldn't have been able to run. And that wasn't something she was willing to risk.

She approached the hunting blind from the west, slowly taking in its surroundings, making sure it was uninhabited. It looked just as it had when she left it three days ago, empty and unoccupied. She eased inside, dropping her pack and her bow, feeling almost at home in the familiar little hut. It was basically big enough for her to lay down, it would have been tight to house two. But it held a roof, and kept out her most imminent threats. She tied the door shut, and then unpacked her satchel, unlaced her boot and wrapped her ankle. She lay down and propped her foot up the wall, trying to get some height to it so the swelling would come down. Breaking out a granola bar, she munched quietly, and her thoughts again drifted. She subconsciously picked at the nail on her right index finger while she thought about her locket. A gift from her grandfather, the last physical piece of him she had in her possession aside from her bow. She missed him every day, heard his voice in her head encouraging her, chastising her, she missed his wisdom. She beat herself up over the loss and then closed her eyes and counted down from ten to one. An old trick that had worked well to refocus her thoughts. She would give herself time to reminisce and mull over her regrets, but she would not wallow. It did no good to focus on things that she could not change.

Closing her eyes brought forth the fatigue she had tamped down over the last hour. Her eyes were heavy and a distinct pressure began to build in the middle of her forehead. She took a deep breath in, and decided to try and catch some rest while she was safely locked in the little hut. With her foot up the wall, she settled in as best she could and closed her eyes.

The rustle of leaves woke her with a start. She struggled for a moment to comprehend where she was. It was dark out, impossible to tell the exact time of the evening, or how long she slept for. She listened attentively for a while, deciding that the leaves rustling was just the wind. There was no sign of movement, no footsteps or drags, no moans, it wasn't a walker or a human. Reassuring herself, she slowly edged herself up to look through the viewing hole. She let her eyes adjust to the dark and take it all in, her heart pounding in her chest. Nothing. A cool breeze caressed her face. She tried to see above the trees but could not glimpse any night sky for the clouds. The scent of rain permeated the air. She eased back down, and turned her attention to her ankle. She rotated it and winced at the pain that greeted her from the movement. Her brain was already formulating a plan. She was close to a water source, but short on food. She would need to find a food source or risk a more serious problem. She decided in the morning she would try to see if she could catch anything down by the river, and if she had success she would stay here, otherwise she would head towards town. She lingered on the last thought with a bit of hesitancy. Town meant people, and people meant problems. Subconsciously she chewed on a fingernail while she pondered, trying to reassure herself that maybe there was a place that wasn't picked over, that wasn't threatening, where she could rest up and give her ankle a break. She settled into a more restless sleep, the sound of raindrops lulling her to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

The afternoon sun peeked through the tree tops and cast a warm glow on her cheeks. She paused her stride and took a moment to soak in the warmth before she looped her trail back towards the river's edge. She had been trekking up the river all day, weaving in and out of the trees to look for good fishing spots and watch for wildlife. She had scavenged some berries, and found a twig to gnaw on and scrub the grunge off her teeth while she walked, or rather, limped. Her ankle bothered her more and more as the day wore on. She tried her best not to let the nagging concerns take hold of her mind as she searched for whatever food the forest would offer her. She carefully negotiated a couple of falling logs as she broke from the shelter of the trees and found herself again on the river shore. Before her was a few larger boulders, creating a shallow pool of cool water.

The steady whoosh of the flow of water welcomed her as the river traveled around boulders, white caps frothing around them. She smiled to herself thinking how fun it would be to take a raft down some of these rapids, and the shook her head. She shifted her feet on the rocky shore and her ankle protested loudly at her and she sighed. Scanning the opposing shore line, she noticed a walker further down as it popped through the trees. She furrowed her brow, watching it meander along the shore towards the water and quickly get swept up by the current and taken downstream. Shaking her head again to herself, she edged around the watery pool towards one of the boulders, limping clumsily as the rocks impeded her steps. She suddenly had an idea as the reflection of her scowl in the pool caught her eye, and she hoisted herself up on the boulder, dropping her gear on the flat top of it, and unlaced her left boot, taking off her sock, and planted her foot in the cool water. She sighed with relief as the cool water bathed her swollen and painful ankle. She rolled her pant leg up and sank her foot in as far as it would go and she let out a small groan as she settled in on the rock. She rubbed the back of her neck where the sunlight beat down on it and shed her jacket, folding it up beside her.

She lost herself in the moment, relaxing waves soothing her tired muscle. She could see the bruising travelling up her calf and down to her toes. She wiggled her toes in the water and cursed herself for her negligence. Caught up in chastising herself, she did not hear the rustle of leaves behind her, but jumped when she heard the voice.

"Hello?" A calm, assured voice called out to her, as the man appeared from the tree line. His hands were raised as a sort of white flag, I mean no harm, approach. She snatched her foot up out of the water and gasped, reaching for her knife, cursing herself for putting herself in such a reckless position of defense.

"Wait! Wait! I just want to say hello," Said the man. She looked at him questioningly, studying his face, recognition dawning on her as she noticed the same clean cut, friendly face she had seen the day before. Her pulse picked up its already galloping rate as alarm bells went off inside her brain.

She was stuck, in no position to defend herself, trapped on the edge of a rock on a river shore with nowhere to go. She started fumbling with her sock and shoe when the man called out.

"Hold on, you don't have to do that," He said, attempting to reassure her. She glanced at his face, saw no guise, and paused. She quickly glanced the treeline, but didn't see anything, and brought her gaze back to the stranger.

"Where's your friend?" she asked, cautiously, as she studied his body language. She could tell he was trying very hard to give off an air of confidence and security, friendly warmth. She tried to see any cracks, but could not distinguish any, and though she hated it, her alarm bells began to quiet as she started to put her sock on her wet foot and slide it back inside her boot.

"You're hurt. I can help you with that. I have medical supplies."

"You got crutches? Plaster of Paris?" she said sharply, throwing him a questionable glare as she gathered her things off the rock and climbed down clumsily. He made a move to help her to which she threw him another icy glare.

"I do. Not here though."

She stared at him for a moment as she slung her satchel over her shoulder and her bow and quiver over her back. Giving him a questionable gaze and barely contained eye roll, she began to limp her way past him.

"Please. I can help you."

"Is this where you hand me a lollipop and lead me to your van in the woods? Thanks I'm okay though." She said sarcastically. He stared at her for a moment, wide eyed, before he cracked a grin, laughing off her quick wit.

"Uh, no, most definitely not. My van is nowhere near here, it's actually a fair ways away." He bit back. "Please let me help you. My name is Aaron."

"Are you for real?" she quipped, looking at him skeptically.

"I, uh, I think so? I'm sorry, I've been told my humor lacks a little in the delivery department. I was just joking about the van," He said, trying to reassure her. He dropped his backpack on the ground, and kept his hands up, non-threatening. He began to walk towards her, causing her to shirk and back up slightly. "Sorry, I, I just want you to know, I don't want to hurt you. I am serious, I want to help you. You've been out here a long time, haven't you?"

She studied him carefully, taking in his clean appearance, shaved face, shortly groomed hair. He had a knife on his hip, and she could see a gun holster peeking out from his jacket as he moved.

"You never answered my question. Your friend?" she asked, again scanning the tree line. She heard rustling leaves, dry crunches, and her ears perked up. She brought her hand down to the handle of her knife slowly, and carefully gripped its variegated handle.

"Wait, it's okay. He's hunting. I was just coming to get some water when I saw you. You looked so peaceful, so relaxed sitting there. I almost didn't want to disturb you. But I had hoped I'd see you again."

The rustling picked up and she wrenched her gaze from his sincere face back to the tree line, where three walkers shuffled out in succession. She unsheathed her knife, and waited for the opportune moment. The injured ankle hindered her attack, she would have to wait for them to come to her. Aaron pulled his knife from his belt and advanced on the first walker. The second shuffled towards her, reaching out and grabbing her outstretched arm. She sunk her knife into its soft skull and tossed it aside. The third walker was right behind the second, and caught her a bit off guard. She stepped back on the rocky shore, her bad ankle wobbling on the unsteady foothold and she winced. Before she could adjust her footing, she was thrown off balance and fell back, her head grazing the boulder she had been sitting on a few minutes earlier. The walker fell on top of her in a heap of deathly stink. The wind knocked out of her and stars circling her eyes left her in a daze. The walker snapped at her as she weakly tried to push it back off her, her head filling with heaviness. There was a flash of movement in her periphery, and she felt the weight of the walker lift off her abruptly before she slipped into unconsciousness as blackness flooded her vision.

A dull throb at the base of her skull greeted her as the darkness ebbed. Slowly sounds started to return to her. She thought it was quiet before; unconsciousness was a whole new level of quiet that was unbelievably unsettling. She welcomed the sound of the river rushing somewhere behind her. A cool breeze caressed her face, sending shivers through her limbs as she took in a few slow deep breaths. She suddenly felt the weight of a blanket on her, causing her to still. She listened attentively, and noted the popping of a fire, and the shuffling of feet. Her heart rate ramped up as she tried to assess her situation without opening her eyes. If she had company she wasn't sure how to handle things. Was she safe? Whoever it was had put a blanket over her when she shivered, so she must be okay. And she wasn't dead. Last she remembered was the full weight of a foul smelling walker on top of her, trying to make her a quick meal. She should be dead by all means, but yet here she was, alive and breathing and despite the headache and her ankle pain, she seemed unscathed. She remembered then that she hadn't been alone. Perhaps the guy that had approached her had helped her? Was that possible? He seemed harmless enough, she remembered feeling a warm friendly vibe from him.

Carefully she opened one eye, and looked around. A small fire burned near her, the smoke curling up into the late evening sky. It was dark, probably 8 or 9 at night, the sun having mostly set into the west. The late twilight cast a dim glow and she could see that she was still on the river shore near where she had fallen earlier. A wool blanket lay on top of her and she could feel something soft under her head. As she tried to surreptitiously scan her surroundings, her companions noticed that she had awaken, one of them rushing to her side.

"You're awake." He stated obviously. The handsome, clean cut man who called himself Aaron, if she remembered correctly. His friend sat across the fire, watching her through a hooded gaze while he chewed on his bottom lip. "Are you okay?"

"I think so," She replied softly, opening both eyes and meeting his gaze warily. "What happened?"

"You got knocked over by a walker and fell and hit your head. Daryl pulled it off of you just in time," He said, gesturing to his partner. "You've been out for a while, a few hours anyways."

She winced internally and swore at herself. She brought her hand up to her face and pinched the bridge of her nose as she silently chastised herself for her stupidity. Collecting herself, she slowly tried to push herself up to sit, ignoring the increasing throbbing in her head, and allowing Aaron to help her.

"Should you be doing that?" he asked nervously. "How's your head?"

"Woozy." She responded, holding her head in her hand as she leaned into it. "Thank you," She said softly as Aaron supported her to sit. She moved her hand to the back of her head and poked around, wincing again as she found the spot, pulling her hand back to see a small drop of blood.

"Is it still bleeding?" Aaron asked, examining the back of her head. "I thought I had cleaned it all up, maybe you need stitches." He gingerly probed the back of her head, moving her dark locks aside to get a closer look. "I have some more gauze, let me just grab it from my pack. Oh thanks Daryl." He said, as Daryl passed him a couple of packs of gauze quietly.

"Ouch!" she hissed as he pressed the gauze to her head.

"Oh I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It's alright. You're helping me. Thank you." She said, holding still while he dabbed at her wound.

"Daryl, could you pass me… thanks." He said, taking the Polysporin from Daryl's outstretched hand and applying some to the wound. "I don't think it needs stitches, thankfully, that's not really within my capabilities. But we should get you to a doctor, you probably have a concussion."

No probably about it, she thought, as stars circled in her vision. A sudden wave of nausea swept over her and she brought the back of her hand up to her mouth and took a deep breath, trying to suppress the heave. Daryl silently handed her a bottle of water, which she took gratefully, a small nod of thanks to him as she tried to tamp down the nausea. She cracked open the bottle and took a small sip as Aaron continued to poke at her head. When he finally stopped, she let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, drew her knees up and leaned her elbows gently on them, and dropped her face into her hands. She could feel two sets of eyes on her as she fought to collect herself. She stayed that way for a while, running through her mental countdown over and over until she felt she had a grip on herself. She could feel ice blue piercing eyes boring into her skin, measuring her for something, but what she didn't know.

Aaron settled back in across from her once he felt she could hold herself up, and watched her earnestly for a moment before turning his attention to the small fire. Daryl continued to study her over the flames, quietly assessing her worth. Eventually he broke the silence that enveloped the evening.

"How many walkers you kill?" he asked, his gravelly voice carrying across the fire.

Aaron drew his gaze from the fire, looking at Daryl questioningly, and then over to her, awaiting a response. Daryl had asked these questions of others, and Aaron still wondered if it was the best way to determine what he was looking for. He decided to just wait and see how it played out. He had his own assertions of this mysterious woman but he would wait.

She had heard the question, odd as it was on its own, and let it sink in. After a few moments of silence, she cleared her throat. Not looking towards either of them, her head still in her hands, stars scattering behind her closed eyelids, she answered.

"Stopped counting a long time ago." She replied as she dropped her hands and crossed her arms, hugging her knees loosely. She pulled her gaze towards him, and met his icy stare with equal temerity.

"How many people?" Daryl countered, gravely.

She resisted the urge to flinch, but took her time answering, maintaining eye contact with her interrogator.

"Seven." She replied, swallowing hard at the truth of it. None of them had come easy. Some of them had asked, begged. Twice she had had no choice, it was them or her. She dropped her eyes to the fire, furrowing her brow as she mentally recounted it all.

"Why?" he countered, leaning onto his hands, elbows firmly planted on his knees as he studied her. She heard the drawl in his voice and guessed he was from somewhere south, Georgia maybe. After staring into the fire, she brought her eyes back up to meet his, the hurt and uncertainty clear in her gaze.

"I had to." She said simply. After a studious gaze, taking her in from head to toe, he nodded, mumbling an assertion to himself.

Aaron watched the exchange quietly, his gaze travelling back and forth between them, watching whatever was unfolding curiously to himself.

"What's your name?" Aaron asked, after a silence that felt a little too lengthy.

"Eleanor. Ellie." She corrected, avoiding their penetrative gazes, feeling very much on display as they watched her.

"Have you been on your own long?" he continued.

Ellie only nodded in reply, her gaze returning to the fire, contemplating all the things that had happened to her recently.

"Why?"

"It's easier." _And harder, in a lot of ways_.

"Not always so easy I bet."

Ellie shook her head in response, smirking at the thought he had read her like a book.

"So you're the talker?" she countered, her turn to question him.

"Usually. Can't help myself most times. I believe there's still good people out here, and I want to get to know them." She brought her gaze to his at this statement, questioningly.

"You believe there's still good people?"

"Of course I do. This world might not be ideal, but it can't kill the innate goodness that still exists in it."

"You don't think that's naïve?" she said, casting him a skeptic glance.

Daryl smirked at this, having been there often himself, especially as of late.

"I believe it's optimistic. Nothing wrong with that."

Ellie rolled her eyes and smirked.

"You disagree." He said, as a statement, not a question.

Ellie took her time responding. These men had helped her, when they didn't have to. They had patched her up and watched over her while she was unconscious. Aaron had fought walkers with her. And he seemed genuinely decent. Daryl was quiet, observant and assessing in his gaze, but non-threatening. It was clear by his stature and demeanor that he certainly had the ability to appear otherwise, but he was very controlled, reserved. Conservative in every bit of his presentation, from the way he moved to the words he spoke.

"I think…" she started, after a lengthy pause, "that the safe bet is caution." She rubbed her chin with the back of her hand, before reaching for her water and taking a cautious sip.

"hmm…" grunted Daryl, nodding his chin in agreement. Ellie waited for more, but Daryl seemed disinclined to elaborate.

Ellie sighed, and gently rolled her neck, slowing as her head began to spin. The nausea had abated for now, but a dull throb persisted in the back of her skull and her head swam.

"You look like you need some rest." Aaron spoke. "Rest here the night, Daryl and I will take turns with watch, and tomorrow we will head out and get you to the doctor."

"The doctor? What are you talking about?"

"We know a doctor, she can help you."

"You know… a doctor?

"Yes. Her name is Denise. She's a part of our community."

"You live in a community? Forgive me, but why are you out here then?"

"We are out here, looking for good people, like yourself. People to bring back with us."

"How do you know I'm a good person?"

"We don't." Daryl muttered, his raspy voice carrying across the fire.

"Yes, you don't. Look, I appreciate that you've been so helpful, I'm truly grateful that you know, you haven't murdered me and stolen my gear, or done anything else to me. Seeing as you've had plenty of opportunity. I appreciate that you didn't do that." She said, glancing sideways at Aaron

"That we didn't murder you or worse? You still think we are gonna do that? We are not going to hurt you. I promise you that." Aaron said earnestly, smiling at her candor.

"Why do you think I'm a good person? What even makes a good person now, in this world?" she said out loud, to the men and to herself. She wasn't sure she even knew the answer to that question.

"Dunno, really. Sometimes you just gotta have faith." Daryl replied, nearly choking on the words as they felt foreign to say now to him. He had faith once, but it had been diligently chipped away these past few months with everything that's happened.

"Look, Ellie, I believe that everyone needs people to survive. You can't do it alone, not for long, definitely not forever. We are better when we have numbers on our side. Our community is prospering, we have walls, homes, hot running water, food, medicine. Things are turning around." Aaron spoke passionately, reaching for his backpack, and grabbing an envelope. He reached around the fire and handed it to her.

Inside were photos, poorly exposed, but still clear enough to make out details. Sturdy metal walls, reinforced. Rows of homes intact, clean yards. Children playing. Children. She paused when she saw a picture of a teenaged boy holding a baby girl.

"We have all lost things in this new world. But we are starting to get things back." Aaron said earnestly. He watched her face as she looked intently at the photo of Carl and Judith, and could swear he saw tears forming in her eyes.

She gazed at the photo, almost longingly, and Daryl watched her with peaked interest as she blinked roughly. He studied her, trying to determine what exactly she had lost, but hesitant to ask the hard question.

"Is that your tagline?" Ellie asked, smirking as she put the photos back in the envelope and handed them back to Aaron. "Because it should be. If you have a tourism sector you should propose it."

Aaron laughed. He liked her humor.

"I'll be sure to bring it up at our next council meeting."

"How is this real?" she asked, trying to make sense of it all. "It's been chaos for so long, I can't even imagine what we have left behind and how one would rebuild that. Or if that is even wise."

"Of course it is. Give me some time and I will convince you."

"I dunno."

"You're a tough sell, I can see that. I've dealt with tougher." He said with a smirk, glancing knowingly at Daryl.

"You?" she asked, nodding at Daryl. He shrugged and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. She could see how he could be a tough sell. The guy gave up nothing.

"Look, like you said, we could have killed you by now, taken your gear, and been well on our merry way. But we didn't. We stayed, we patched you up, and we want you to come with us."

Ellie looked at them momentarily, and then looked at her gear, neatly piled for her beside where she was laying. The frayed wool blanket that covered her lap was worn, but warm. Her head began to swim again, as the throbbing picked up, forcing her to close her eyes and take a deep breath. Fighting the pressure became difficult, and she slowly lowered herself down to the ground, laying her head gently back down on the folded jean jacket that had acted as pillow.

Her index finger traveled subconsciously to her mouth so she could chew on her nail as she weighed her options. She had planned to head into town now that the weather was changing and food sources were slimming. The last twenty four hours had been a bit of a mess though. A twisted ankle would hinder her progress and safety, as was clear earlier today when she stumbled on the rocks. And now adding a concussion to the mix, she was practically walking bait, or rather, limping bait. She would not get far on her own. Did she really even have a choice?

"I'm going to slow you guys down. I'm not exactly in the best shape right now, it's been a rough couple of days," she said, her eyes closed, as she pinched the bridge of her nose.

"We can go slowly. We have a vehicle on the highway, a few miles north of here, " Aaron replied, grinning deeply.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's note: Thank you everyone for the follows and the reviews :) I truly appreciate it. I will try my best to update this story frequently. I have a fair chunk of it written, and I'm not sure how long I want to take it to, so bear with me :) Lot's of love, xo

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"Craft beer," Aaron said, with a forlorn look on his face. "And wings. Lots of sauce."

Ellie smiled, and nodded as she dug through her bag for her water bottle. She unscrewed the lid and took a long slow sip, savoring the crisp liquid as it traveled down her dry throat. She leaned against the thick tree trunk behind her, and sighed, as she shifted weight off her sore foot.

They had been trekking through the woods most of the day, through miles of forest, dense in places, the forest floor covered in leaves and branches and ferns. They had to pick their way through at times, slowly for Ellie's sake, taking each step carefully and measured. The men stopped regularly, though Ellie never once asked for a break, after her slow start to the morning. She had woken with raging nausea and a headache, fighting dizziness as she adjusted to being upright after her fall. She silently trudged along behind them, her pace slow and deliberate as she tried to put as little weight on her foot as possible. Aaron often dropped back and walked beside her, chatting with her about nothing in particular. Daryl walked ahead, alone, scouting out easier tracks, and backtracking to them to lead them through less dense areas.

She got the impression he was more comfortable in the lead. He naturally isolated himself; he was quiet where Aaron was not, but she did not once think he wasn't paying attention. She felt he was aware of everything being said, and everything not being said. She could feel his eyes on her, when he would circle back, assessing her. For what she wasn't entirely sure, but she could tell he was looking for cracks in her stamina. All that did was give her more drive to move; it was almost like a challenge she was meeting, to prove her worth.

"Pizza," Ellie contributed, smiling at the thought. "I can almost taste it."

The game had started simply. What do you miss the most? Aaron's attempt at getting her to open up, to learn more about her. There was no mention of family, or friends, pets, anything loved or cherished. Just life's simple pleasures. Daryl would shake his head from time to time, merely shrugging his shoulders when Aaron would prod him for a contribution. _He didn't miss anything_ , he'd say, _didn't matter anymore._

"Black and white movies." Aaron countered.

"Oh yes! Roman Holiday, Holiday Inn, The Wizard of Oz!" Ellie exclaimed, sighing as she leaned against the tree, closing her eyes. The sun was beginning to set, dim light hitting the forest floor, casting shadows and deepening colors. She gently rotated her sore ankle, trying to ease the ache in her calf muscle, when she felt someone grab her foot to hold it still. She gasped and looked down to see Daryl, kneeling in front of her, her foot in his hands along with two sticks and a couple of shoe laces.

"You've been limping bad for the last couple hours," he mumbled softly, as he created a makeshift splint for her ankle, carefully wrapping the laces around her ankle after placing the sticks on either side of her foot. She tried to keep her balance by leaning against the large tree trunk, wobbling slightly on her good leg.

"Th…thanks." She replied, caught off guard by the gesture. His touch was gentle as he manipulated her ankle. "I should have thought of that earlier."

"No problem," he shrugged off her gratitude like it were nothing, gently placing her foot on the ground. She hesitantly put weight on her foot, and nodded at him when it held her weight. She had subconsciously put her hand on his shoulder to steady herself, quickly drawing it away and apologizing awkwardly, a flush travelling up her cheeks.

"Here." Aaron said, breaking the awkward silence, handing her two Tylenol. He held his hand open to her until she took them, though she tried to refuse, he would not be swayed. "Should we make camp here?" he asked Daryl, turning to face him. Daryl drew his lip between his teeth and nodded as he moved away from Ellie.

"What was your favorite movie?" Aaron asked Ellie, as they swiftly set up camp, independently taking up jobs, working quietly in unison.

Ellie smiled to herself as she tried to remember. So many things from before had faded into nothingness, no longer relevant in any way. Parts of her, the things that made her who she was, gone. She was just another wandering, living being now. Not much different from the dead really, most of her personality stripped away from two years alone and isolated.

"White Christmas," she said, smiling softly, her gaze softening. "I used to watch it every year with my Gramps, it was his favorite Christmas movie. He always used to say Rosemary Clooney reminded him of my Gram."

"You guys were close?"

"He raised me," she replied, nodding her head, her voice going dry. "He used to take me fishing, camping, taught me so much. Taught me how to shoot a bow." She smiled as she reminisced about her Gramps, memories of him soothing like a warm bath.

"A good man," he said, observantly. "Took you in? What happened to your parents?"

Ellie cringed, and shook her head.

"Didn't want me."

"I'm sorry." He offered, as he handed her a can of soup off the fire. She sat back and accepted it, wrapping her hands in her jacket sleeves to keep from burning them.

"S'alright," she shrugged, taking a sip of the hot liquid. "My mom had some drug issues, basically chose coke over me, which is fine I guess. Wouldn't have been a good scene to grow up in. Don't know who my dad is. Doesn't matter really. My Gramps was there for me, made sure I had a good life. Can't complain, things could have been a lot worse." She said indifferently as she slowly sipped on the hot liquid.

Daryl sat quietly across the fire, his hooded gaze watching her as she talked, her demeanor detached. He noticed she curled into herself as she explained her story to Aaron, drawing her knees into her chest.

"Any siblings?" Aaron asked as he settled in near her.

Ellie shook her head, her gaze focused on the fire. "You?"

"No, I was an only child. I'm sure that's something my mom was extremely disappointed by. I was not the example of a child she had been hoping for. Definitely not stereo-typically straight enough for her liking." He said with a smirk. "I think everything about my personality scared her. She wanted a boy who would go play football and get bruised and dirty, and I just wasn't that kid. She tried very hard to make me manlier, not quite sure it had the results she was hoping for," he added, with a sharp laugh.

"I'm sorry," Ellie offered, looking at Aaron softly.

"S'alright," he said, mimicking her earlier comment. "She did her best, I suppose. And I'm alright now. I'm making it. Maybe she'd even be proud," he added, smirking at the thought.

"I bet she would."

"Your Gramps?"

"He'd like you. He believed in people too. Even believed in my mom, for a long time. Didn't want me going to foster care, in case she cleaned up and decided being a parent was a legit thing she could commit to. I told him all the time that was ridiculous, but that was his girl, she would get it together. I knew, I always knew. He would have been disappointed in me. I gave up, on people, a long time ago."

"I don't think you've given up entirely." Aaron noted, as he stoked the small fire. "You're here, aren't you?"

Ellie nodded, and contemplated his words. She brought her gaze up, and met Aaron's blue eyes, smiling softly. "Thank you." She whispered. Her gaze traveled to Daryl, who was watching the fire intently, eating in silence. His eyes flickered to her briefly and she smiled at him. "Thank you both."

Daryl sat quietly across from them, his eyes on the fire as he ate in silence, listening to their exchange. He could hear the struggle in Ellie's voice as she talked, sensing her hesitation about her choices. He wondered about the things she wasn't saying. Silence enveloped them all for a while as they let the quiet rustling of leaves and the crackle of the fire overtake their senses, settling in for night and getting comfy.

Ellie broke the silence a while later with a deep sigh, before resuming her list with Aaron.

"Google," she said, letting out a long, lamenting sigh.

"Shit that's a good one," he replied, laughing softly.


	4. Chapter 4

"You're a better shot than you think you are," Daryl said to Ellie as he grabbed the rabbit by the bolt that stuck cruelly out of its neck, collecting Ellie's kill.

"Thanks," She replied, smiling softly. She got the impression that he didn't offer praise undeservedly. He was not exactly a conversationalist, but he was observant. She grudgingly accepted the compliment and ducked her head as she slung her bow over her shoulder.

"We should look for a place to set up camp for the night, have some dinner," Aaron offered, coming up behind them. Daryl nodded, and they continued to pick their way through the woods, keeping an eye out for a place to stop.

Ellie became quiet after their hunt, her unease growing as they crept closer to the forests edges and approached the road. After a couple of days with these two, she had begun to feel safe, content with her choice to go with them to Alexandria. It wasn't them that pricked her unease. This part of the woods was unpredictable, close to the roads meant more chance of people, and there had been a couple of questionable groups roaming around here the last time she had been through. She said a silent prayer with each step that their trek remained uneventful.

"You okay? You're quiet? How's the ankle?" Aaron asked, peppering her with questions. He was quite relentless, expressing frequent concern that they were travelling too fast, pushing for rest stops, and camping every night for hours to let her rest.

She nodded, noting the heaviness of her head. No longer dizzy or nauseous, it was an unrelenting headache that pestered her as the reminder of her tousle with a boulder. Her ankle throbbed, despite the bracing from thick twigs that Daryl had jimmied up for her as a makeshift splint. She tried hard not to complain, gritting her teeth and bearing through the discomfort of walking for hours on end. It was a testament to the two men who had found her that they had the patience to slow their pace so significantly and expressed such concern for her welfare. She felt guilty for misjudging them and letting her mistrust of the world taint her impression.

These were good men. She knew that now. They had been nothing but kind and gracious these past two days. She learned a lot about Aaron, his life before the change, his husband. He was open and welcoming of questions, at ease with giving commentary on his life. Daryl less so. He answered direct questions only, and contributed minimally to conversation. He seemed extremely selective over what he would share and how much. She thought he had clearly been through a lot, and didn't blame him for being so selective over what details he shared with others. She identified with this quiet, observant, physically and emotionally dark person. She had experienced plenty of pain and darkness in her life, and yet here she was, still standing. A survivor. Aaron had started off their trek asking her question after question, but she too was selective of what she told them. He picked up on her discomfort with sharing details of her past and eased off on his interrogations, selecting opportune moments to connect as they came up.

She had shared with them more than she had intended to, certainly more than she had with anyone in a very long time. She talked about growing up in Virginia with her grandfather and all the things he had taught her. She spoke briefly of her life in Seattle, working as a palliative nurse, but skirted questions related to why she had moved across country, and how she had made it back here after the turn. That part of her past that had brought her to Seattle was something she had worked very hard to put away.

Aaron pulled out his map and unfolded a portion of it, tracking their trail as they walked along. Ellie looked over his shoulder and cringed, stopping in her tracks momentarily.

"What's up?" he asked.

Daryl noticed Ellie stop and paused mid stride, studying her. He held the rabbit by the bolt, his crossbow slung over his shoulder. She looked around cautiously and then studied the forest floor for a moment. He perked his ears up easily, out of habit, listening to all the sounds around them. His gaze followed hers to the leaves on the ground, looking for telltale signs. He furrowed his brow, and moved closer to her and Aaron, looking at the map to see what had startled her.

"What is it?" Daryl asked her as she continued to scan her surroundings.

"Sorry. Nothing," She said, shaking her head.

"No. What's up?" he pressed, catching her eyes and looking at her.

She cleared her throat, uncomfortable with his penetrative gaze.

"This area. We shouldn't camp here."

"Why?"

" 'S not safe," She said, her unease building. She hadn't noticed how much ground they'd actually covered today, and how close they were to the border of the forest.

"We are just a few miles south of the car, we can stick to the road once we hit it and make it there sometime before dawn. What do you think? How's your ankle?" Aaron asked, not picking up on her concern and unease.

"Why's it not safe El?" Daryl asked, ignoring Aaron.

"People. Bad people," She said, averting her gaze, feeling fidgety. She glanced at Aaron's map once more, then turned and started to head east, away from the road. She gripped her bowstring where it crossed her chest, tightly, her knuckles whitening.

"Ellie, that's the wrong way," Aaron called. Daryl held up his hand to Aaron to silence him and followed a limping Ellie into the forest, waving Aaron to join him.

After a few moments, Ellie broke the silence.

"A few weeks ago, I ran into a group. All men, they tried to swarm me. They were bad news. Definitely not nice, friendly folk, if you catch my drift."

"You were by yourself?"

"Yes."

He nodded in acknowledgement and returned to silence, tamping down the bitter disgust that began to rise in his chest. A woman alone in the woods, and a group of questionable men? He knew the punchline to that sick riddle. He wondered how she was able to get away from them. He took the lead and directed them away from the road. They walked a fair ways back into the woods east before turning back south to follow the line of the road towards where the cars would be. It was agreed that they would camp deeper into the woods and make a straight shot to the cars in the morning. The light was starting to ebb as the sun began to set in the evening, and they finally found a small clearing where they could set up for the night. They dumped their gear and attacked their individual jobs without instruction or chatter. Daryl got to work on the rabbit while Aaron set up perimeter alarms and Ellie built a small fire. She crouched over a pit she had dug, easing her weight off her left leg, balancing delicately on her right as she piled kindling and worked the flames to a decent size.

Daryl watched her gracefully shift her weight as he gutted and skinned the rabbit. Once the fire was lit she pushed back with her good leg, and landed on her butt, stretching her left leg out to the side, curling her right leg in, tucking her foot under her knee. She began massaging her calf, and tried flexing her ankle, wincing. She tried in vain to keep the groans that escaped her mouth quiet.

"You should have said something sooner. We could have stopped a ways back," He said, watching her closely as he placed the naked rabbit on a makeshift spit.

"It's okay," She said softly, not looking at him as she absently rubbed her aching calf muscle. She contemplated removing her boot and splint, but decided against it. "Better that we didn't."

"Here, take these," Aaron instructed, handing her two Tylenol and a bottle of water. She took them without protest, after two days of trying to decline from these two stubborn men, she had learned to just shut up and take them. He watched her take them then moved over to the other side of the fire, settling in, and started rifling through his pack for something to go with the meager rabbit. He pulled out a can of peas and carrots, and some table crackers.

She wiggled her toes in her boot, changing her mind and then reached forward to undo the ties that held her makeshift splint in place. Her fingers worked at the knots, unable to get them untied as she mumbled to herself. Her fingers were quickly swatted away and replaced by Daryl's swift nimble fingers. He worked at the knots, untying them and removing his makeshift splint, and then worked at the laces of her boot. She could not hold in the sigh of relief as he opened her boot, but she stopped him when he tried to take it off. Grabbing her pack she threw it towards her leg and he gently placed her foot on it and she groaned in relief, laying down on her back on the dry leaves of the forest floor.

"Thanks," She said softly after a moment, letting out a heavy breath.

"You should take that boot off too," He said, gesturing at her foot as he stepped away, returning to the task of dinner prep.

"Can't. I'll never get it back on. It's okay, it's sort of working as a tensor, keeps the swelling contained."

"Wouldn't want you to lose that foot."

"I won't," she said, smirking. "I can feel the pulse, don't worry, it's pounding. Circulation's fine." She had her arm over her eyes as she began to relax, the throbbing in her foot ebbing with the release of pressure, and she slowly rotated her ankle.

Meal preparations continued silently in the little makeshift camp, as the two men communicated wordlessly with each other. Ellie rested briefly while food was cooking, sitting up once she was handed a bowl of cooked meat and veg.

"Thanks," She said to Aaron, accepting the food and sitting up. They ate in companionable silence, settling in around the fire, beginning to relax.

Daryl paused when he was spooning his last bite of his meal, hearing a noise that seemed foreign. He waited a moment, before finishing his last bite. Slowly getting up, he handed his bowl to Ellie, placing a finger over his mouth to indicate quiet, and grabbed his crossbow. Ellie looked at him, alarmed, putting down the bowls, reflexively checking to see that her knife was still hooked on her belt. She glanced at Aaron, who had also put his bowl down, and had undone the clip on his holster.

Daryl stalked behind Ellie and circled the encampment, stopping and listening every few feet, his brow deeply furrowed. Ellie swiftly reached for her boot and tightened the loose laces, and kicked her pack aside. She rose from the ground and turned around. Scanning the woods behind her, her pulse quickened. The unease she had felt all day bubbled in her chest. She gripped the handle of her knife tightly, ready to pull it from its sheath at a moment.

"Well well well, ain't this a homey site." A crusty voice carried into the camp, as a haggard older man sauntered into their camp, stepping over the strung up cans they had set up as an alarm. Daryl whipped his crossbow over, aiming it squarely at the man's face.

"Ease up their partner," Another voice said from behind Daryl, who froze when he felt the barrel of a shotgun press lightly behind his ear.

Aaron began backing up as another man pushed towards him through the trees, gun aimed at his chest. Aaron put his hands up as the man stood firm, glaring at him over the sight.

Ellie's heart began to pound in her chest as she took in the scene, trying to tamp down the panic. She glanced at Daryl, who's eyes were trained on the oldest man of the group. He quickly glanced back at her, making eye contact, and she subtly nodded, indicating that this was the group she had encountered before. She was just formulating how much smaller the group appeared when a coarse, rough hand grasped hers at her belt firmly, while an arm circled her rib cage, pulling her roughly up against a sweaty, thick body.

"I'm gonna get you to let that go sweetheart." A thick accented voice whispered in her ear, spit flying and hitting her skin. She cringed as his thick fingers pried hers off her knife grip and wrenched her hand behind her back. His arm tightened around her ribs, squeezing the air out of her. She wiggled against his grip for a moment until a revolver barrel pressed against her temple.

"Ease up Eddie, I don't want her brains all over my face!" her captor called out. She froze as Eddie cocked the gun.

Ellie's eyes found Daryl's in the circle, his eyes widening at the sight of her, gun to her head and pulled tightly to the large man behind her. His aim slackened on his crossbow slightly, as he warred with his instinct.

"That's it friend, I'll just get you to lower that beaut of a bow for me," said the older man, who had first entered their camp. "Let's start things off nicely here." He added, slyly.

Daryl narrowed his eyes and tightened his grip on his crossbow. He bit the inside of his cheek as he studied the man. Sizing him up, he decided to play safe, and slowly lowered the bow.

"That's it. Playing nice, I like it," commented the old man, as the guy behind Daryl grabbed the bow from him swiftly, tossing it aside. "This is going to go swimmingly."

"What d'you want?" Daryl grunted as he was unceremoniously shoved towards Aaron, who had been patted down and weapons removed. Daryl's captor proceeded to pat him down, removing his weapons and adding them to Aaron's pile.

The old man sauntered towards the fire, to the remnants of dinner, and spooned himself a taste from the pot, slurping up the veg.

"Rabbit, nicely done. You cook this up, sugar tits?" he asked, gesturing at Ellie, who scowled in response. "Make these boys a nice dinner, offer them some 'creature comforts'?" he added, raising his eyebrows. Ellie frowned, but did not respond. "No?" Daryl's eyes narrowed at the comments as he glared at the older man, watching him pace about the fire with an air of authority. It was clear he had done this sort of thing before, and he was dictating how it would go.

"I bet she's been all kinds of entertainment. Pretty face like that, gotta pay somehow to make it now a days, hey Earl?" the man holding Ellie quipped, squeezing her tightly up against him and grunting into her ear, causing her to let out a little yelp.

Ellie's wide eyes met Aaron's gaze, his brow furrowed in concern as he glanced from person to person, trying to read the group to see if he could breach some sort of resolution. Ellie's mind raced with ideas and options, her breath and heart rate quickening with panic over the fact that their options were few. She glanced at Daryl, who's eyes were trained on the leader, as he chewed on his lower lip.

"Now now Bill, I don't think the lady agrees with ya. Maybe ease up on your grip a bit. Wouldn't want to suffocate a precious thing like that." Earl directed, as he wandered the camp, perusing their supplies.

"Not yet anyways," Bill whispered in her ear as he slackened his grip on her. She remained rigid, afraid to move as her arm was still twisted awkwardly behind her back. The man holding the gun to her head dropped the gun, groaning slightly. "Eddie, keep it together." Bill whispered at him, turning towards his partner, dragging Ellie with him. She looked the man over, he was slightly hunched, his gun pointed to the ground, his other arm gripping his stomach where a large red stain caught her gaze. He braced his stomach and groaned again, sweat dripping from his forehead to the ground. She furrowed her brow as she studied him.

"So. Here's what's gonna go down. I don't normally give people a rundown, but I like you three, I think you should know what you're in for." Earl said, as he grabbed the pot of left over food and sat himself down on a log, shoveling rabbit and vegetables into his mouth as he talked.

"First, I'm gonna finish this here stew, delicious by the way. Then I'm gonna get my boys here to rifle through your things, and we will help ourselves to whatever we feel fit to. Then, the rest is up to you. See, you've made your way to our part of the woods here. This here territory belongs to me and my boys. Now, wouldn't be fair to let y'all pass through without paying up a toll. I consider myself a Robin Hood, of a sort. Thing is, we are running pretty poor right now, and you all look like you're doing pretty well fine."

"You're nuts if you think we're gonna let you take our stuff." Daryl spat back.

"That's fine. We can kill ya for it too, you know. Easily. More of us than you."

"You could try old man."

"No one has to die." Ellie spoke up, her voice trembling. Daryl looked at her and furrowed his brow. He subtly shook his head at her. "No one has to die." She repeated, ignoring his warning.

"Well well well, she does speak. Tell me sugar tits, you gonna negotiate? Your friend sure don't seem interested," Earl said, studying Ellie, his eyes travelling up the full length of her body. The intense gaze caused goosebumps to form on her skin as she balked under the scrutiny of his gaze. Earl grinned lasciviously at her, noticing her discomfort.

"Let my friends go."

"Now honey, you gonna have to give me something if you expect me to be doing that," Earl said, his voice dripping with honey. "Why would I just let them walk away?"

"Your friend, he doesn't look so good. Stab wound, in the abdomen? I can fix him up for you. Stitch his wound. You let them go and I'll do that."

"Interesting. Eddie what you think?" he asked, gesturing to the doubled over guy who was close to fainting on them. He grunted and groaned but did not reply. "You think that would do, good enough for payment? I noticed you never mentioned yourself, just your friends. What else you got for us?"

"I'll tell you what she's got." Bill commented, squeezing her to him again. "Firm tits and a nice ass." She struggled against him as he thrust his pelvis into her. Daryl and Aaron both balked at the action, moving towards her.

"Ease up there Billy. Let the girl go." Earl instructed, as the men holding Daryl and Aaron at gun point shoved them both back. "Her friends aren't so fond of you treating her that way, I'm gathering. That right boys? Don't like your property handled so roughly?" he smirked. Daryl glared coldly at Bill as he released Ellie, shoving her forward, causing her to stumble, slightly off balance.

"I'm not their property," She said simply. "Just a friend. You'll let them go?"

"You'll stitch my boy up, then we will talk some more about that."

"No deal." She said boldly.

"You got some balls on you, woman. Get to work on him, 'fore I change my mind."

"I need my pack, got some supplies in there." She gestured to Aaron's pack. He glanced at her questioningly, but schooled his expression once he saw his captor watching. Earl picked up the pack and tossed it at her roughly.

Eddie was now fully bent over, puking into the bushes with a loud groan. He was moments away from collapsing. Ellie gestured at Billy to bring him over to a log to sit on.

"You'll have to hold him up." She said simply to Billy as she rifled through Aaron's pack, grabbing medical supplies, and tucking a pair of scissors between some packs of gauze. She quickly formulated a plan and hoped that the guys would catch on quickly, as there wouldn't be much time to act. She quickly risked a side glance at Daryl, who was watching her intently. Her eyes met his and she tried to silently communicate her message.

"Come on girl, get on it." Billy snapped at her. She glared at him as she collected her supplies and made her way over to the injured man. Earl rifled through their packs while she set her stuff beside her and crouched in front of a hunched over Eddie. Billy sat beside him, propping him up. Ellie's pulse pounded in her chest, as she gathered her courage to make her move. When Billy had let her go, he had neglected to remove her knife. She knew she would only have once chance to get it right, and she hoped that Daryl and Aaron would be reactive to it when she did. It was a huge risk, but their only chance.

She pulled up Eddies shirt and surveyed the wound. Dark red edges surrounded a large, foul looking wound. It was clearly beyond saving and had been festering for some time, but she hid her reaction to her grim assessment and got to work. She cleaned it up as best she could, her patient groaning loudly with each press of gauze. Billy struggled to hold him still, which would work in her favor. She feigned opening up the suture kit, noting that Earl was picking through her pack, distracted. Bill was struggling to control Eddie, and she took her opportunity, swiftly unsheathing her knife and plunging it firmly into the side of Bill's neck, causing him to sputter and gasp once as blood bubbled out of his neck and mouth, before falling backwards. She then grabbed the scissors from within her supplies, and opening them wide, sliced through Eddie's throat as he started to pitch forward towards her. A spray of wet, hot blood hit her face and neck as she braced herself under the weight of the body. She heard commotion behind her and a single gunshot from the shotgun behind her, but could not turn around as she struggled with the weight of Eddie's body toppling over her.

Pushing back with all her strength, she shoved him away from her, and leaned over Bill's body, wrenching her knife out of his neck. Gasping as adrenaline washed over her, she knifed Billy and then Eddie in the head one after another. Her pulse raced and she whirled around just as Aaron grabbed her. He ducked as she swung her knife around instinctively.

"Easy! Easy! Are you okay?" he exclaimed, grabbing her by the shoulders to steady her once her knife hand dropped. She breathed heavily, her heart racing so fast it felt like it was going to gallop right out of her chest. She brought a shaky hand up to her mouth, wiping away wetness that she knew was blood but pushed the thought back in her hazy mind. "Ellie? Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She whispered, her voice hoarse. She glanced around Aaron to see bodies littering the camp, Daryl was rifling through the group's weapons cache, breathing heavily, sweat and drops of blood dotting his face. "You?"

"Yeah." He answered simply, nodding his head, his eyes wide. HE looked back over at the other side of the camp, and dropped his tremulous hands from Ellie's shoulders. "Daryl?"

Daryl held up a hand silently to acknowledge the question. He moved with purpose about the camp, and gestured to Aaron to help him collect the weapons and stash them in his pack.

Ellie stood vacantly, knife in hand, blood dripping from her hand down the blade, watching the guys work. She slowly turned around and took in the scene behind her. Two slumped dead bodies, bleeding their life's blood into the ground around them, all color drained from them. She had a thought in the back of her head that she should follow Daryl's lead and relieve the dead men of their weapons. Shakily, she dropped her knife, and moved towards Eddie first. His gun had fallen beside his body when he had sat on the log, and she picked it up, checking the ammo, counting four bullets and one in the chamber. Absently she placed the gun next to her knife on the ground, before moving more hesitantly to Bill's body. She crouched beside him, ignoring the sharp pain that shot up her calf at the effort to flex her ankle without the splint for support. She eyed his lifeless form for a moment before clearing off his belt of knife and gun, this one with only 2 bullets. It registered that these guys were low on ammo, and would likely not have risked firing at them and wasting their remaining bullets. That's not to say these men weren't physically capable of overpowering the trio, but a small little niggle of guilt burrowed in her chest all the same.

She remained crouched, ignoring the sharp throbbing of her ankle until Daryl touched her shoulder. She shuddered and flinched, standing up quickly, startled by his touch. Awkwardly bumping into him as she rose from her crouch, she turned around to face him. He held a hand to her shoulder to steady her clumsiness, and held out a scrap of cloth for her, gesturing to her face. She stared at him vacantly for a moment, before he moved his hand from her shoulder to tip her chin up, swiping his thumb across the delicate point of her chin with extreme care and caution. She looked down at his thumb, seeing the red stain and registering what he was getting at. Her stomach lurched at the thought, as she brought the scrap of fabric up to her face and rubbed the best she could without seeing, noting the spot on her chin that stung from the ghost of a touch.

Daryl watched her with a wary eye, not quite sure why he had reached out and touched her when he could have just told her to wipe her face. She looked a bit like Rick after he bit out that man's neck, he thought to himself. She looked wild, scared, but above all capable. He couldn't hide his surprise at her swift thinking and lack of hesitation. She had moved with skill and speed, both necessities especially in this kind of situation. And she had trusted that he and Aaron would act with her. It floored him a little that after only two days, this skeptical, rational woman would put that much trust in them. _And he thought that not much surprised him anymore_ , he scoffed at himself internally. He clenched his hand subconsciously, his thumb tingling slightly at the memory of her cool, smooth skin, slick with blood. He didn't move from her side while she cleaned herself up, until she handed him back the rag.

"Thanks," She said softly, her voice cracking. Waves of nausea roiled in her stomach and threatened to overtake her as she stood in her spot. She started her mental countdown, trying to calm her tremulous nerves.

"Hey. That was good," Daryl said, offering her a compliment, not sure how she would take it, but feeling like he needed to express it nonetheless.

She smiled softly in return, and ducked her head.

"No, seriously. You didn't have to do that," He said, trying to add comfort, but stalling when he noticed her wince at his phrasing. "I meant…"

"It's okay. I know what you meant," She said softly, ducking her head again. Her voice was hoarse and cracking with each word.

"Everything is packed," Aaron said, interrupting whatever moment was happening, handing packs to Daryl and Ellie. "We heading out?"

"Yeah." Daryl replied, nodding his head west as he slung his pack over his back, picking up his crossbow and starting out, leading the way.

Silently Ellie grabbed her pack and slung it over her back, vaguely noting that her shirt was wet and clinging to her skin. Numbness crept over her entire body as the weight of her actions settled in. She tried to tamp down the unease as she slung her bow over her shoulder and followed the two men to the edges of their encampment. As she passed Earl's corpse, face obliterated by a shot gun shell, her stomach lurched again, and she could not hold back her dinner as it forced its way out of her stomach. She whipped around and bent over, pouring her stomach contents to the ground with one forceful purge. Shaking, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, dirty now with blood, dirt and vomit, but she didn't care. Aaron paused, and turned back to help her, handing her a bottle of water for her to take a sip from. He placed a gentle hand on her upper back while she rinsed out her mouth, and the swallowed a few sips of the cool liquid. She poured a small amount onto her hands and the rubbed it in, wiping her hands on her shirt, aware she wasn't really any cleaner, but feeling better about it.

"Thank you," Aaron whispered to her, his fingers flexing on her back as he fought the urge to pull her into a hug. "Thank you for…" he started, his voice failing him. She capped the water bottle and smiled at him, reaching out and squeezing the fingers that gripped the strap of his pack. He nodded at her and they turned and followed Daryl, who had whistled back at them to catch up.

They traveled through the night in silence, keeping a swift pace. Ellie ignored the growing ache in her ankle and calf, pushed it aside to meet the end goal. They cut a path through the woods, pushing west back towards the highway, and breached the woods as the sun began to peak out above the trees. Daryl confidently led their way up the highway, sticking close to the road, weaving in and out of the trees to gauge their distance, check for walkers, and people, finding few of the former, easy to dispatch, and none of the latter. Ellie ignored the pit that gnawed at her stomach as she tried not to think about what happened back at the camp. She ran through her mental countdown whenever the thoughts started to creep back into the forefront of her mind. Occasionally her hand fell to the handle of her knife and she subconsciously wrapped her fingers around its handle. They walked well into the morning without pause, weary and tired but unable or unwilling to stop, until they approached a grouping of cars, what looked like the remnants of an accident.

Daryl approached the cluster of cars slowly and carefully, holding his hand up as signal to the other two, his crossbow drawn high. He took out an approaching walker with a quickly fired bolt between the eyes, and reloaded his weapon to tackle the second walker approaching. It fell before he got his crossbow up, a second bolt travelling past him and through the walker's mouth. He turned his head around to see Ellie drawing a second arrow from her quiver and pulling back on the string. His eyes held a glint of surprise, before he nodded and turned back to his task. Weaving through the group of cars, on a mission, he stopped when he found what he was looking for. Ellie bent over the rotting corpses to collect the arrows as she passed over them.

A rusted out Buick parked in the middle of the cluster of cars, looking like it had been a part of the same rusted mess as all the other cars. He approached it from the drivers side, quietly opening the door (as quiet as a rusty hinge can open), and popped the hood. Aaron and Ellie surrounded the car and looked out in different directions, watching for oncoming walkers or people, while Daryl worked. Ellie's limbs protested the cease in momentum from their hours of walking. Every joint ached, but particularly her left ankle. She had left the splint back at the camp and walked for hours through uneven terrain in the dark and her ankle had had enough. She tried to ignore the shaking that was travelling up her leg, shifting her weight to her right leg, while she scanned the area around her. Her head throbbed, dehydration and lingering aches from her concussion starting to flare up. She tamped it all down and mentally counted from ten to one, over and over again, attempting to retreat to the safe place she had built in her mind over years of therapy.

Daryl reattached the battery he had hidden under the car's front seat, and attached a couple of other hoses that had been surreptitiously disconnected, before easing himself into the front seat to try the ignition. It was stubborn initially but eventually after the fourth turn, the engine turned over and the rust bucket lumbered to life. Once it started, Aaron opened the back seat door, grabbing Ellie's pack as she shed it on the ground to fling into the back seat. He placed the packs in the trunk as Ellie climbed into the back seat of the car, sagging into the old cushions, their deflated softness enveloping her aching body. Daryl put the car into gear as Aaron jumped into the front passenger seat, and he deftly backed the car out of the grouping of rusted vehicles, turning around and heading northeast on the highway.

Somewhere along the way, the repetitive blur of trees, dead cars, and dead people lulled Ellie to sleep. She tried to fight the impending fatigue as it washed over her muscles and fogged her brain, but the persistent throb behind her eyes became hypnotizing and she closed her eyelids and succumbed to the call to rest. She didn't even register when they pulled over a few hours later to switch drivers and fuel up. When her eyes finally opened, it was dark and cool inside the car. Her shirt clung to her torso, dirty with sweat and blood, and she shivered as she re-positioned her aching body in the backseat. Aaron looked back at her from the rear-view mirror, connecting with her eyes and smiling as he gripped the steering wheel. In the front passenger seat Daryl slept quietly, head pressed against the cool glass, breathing deep and even.

"We're here," Aaron said softly to Ellie, gesturing ahead of him to a large rusty metal gate that loomed in front of them. Behind it she could see the glow from lamps, and a lookout post near the side of the gate, where someone stood with a rifle, and signaled for the gate to open.


	5. Chapter 5

Aaron pulled the car up to a two story house with a wraparound porch and a well maintained lawn, after they entered the gates of Alexandria. The three of them crawled out of the vehicle, stiff muscles screaming at them in protest after the long hours of driving. Though each of them had slept, their bodies ached with fatigue.

Ellie looked at the house in awe, and then turned her head to look up and down the street. Rows of houses with well-kept lawns, kids' toys, soccer balls littering the crisp green grass. It was dark, sometime near midnight, and most houses were dark, but there were a couple with dim lights shining out of ground floor and upper floor windows. It felt like a different world. She stood and leaned against the car unsteadily as she took it all in. It felt surreal, like a postcard of a different time. The air was still, aside from a slight breeze, carrying the distant moans of walkers outside the walls. Otherwise, quiet enveloped her, but it felt welcoming instead of oppressive and uneasy. She was impressed by the impact the walls and the normalcy of the neighborhood had on her sense of security and safety.

"Is this real?" she whispered.

"I know, right?" Aaron replied. "Come with me," he said, gesturing to the front door of the house, carrying her gear for her while she limped forward. Daryl had unloaded the trunk, carrying stuff into the garage.

"Should we help him?" she asked as they made their way up the steps of the porch. She smiled at the site of a porch swing stuffed with pillows. _This couldn't be real, who has time to sit on a porch swing?_

"Naw, we should get you a shower I think. Daryl will be fine to unload on his own. I want to get Denise to look at your ankle, but if she sees you like this, it might frighten her a bit."

"Do I look that terrible?" she asked, smirking. Daryl snorted to himself from the garage where he could hear their banter. "I guess that's a yes?"

"No, you don't look bad, just that Denise hasn't spent a lot of time outside the walls," He explained, chuckling at her self-deprecation before his smile faltered. "Daryl doesn't look any worse than you or I do."

"Well, that's not saying much," she joked, snickering, tossing a smirk at Daryl as they made eye contact.

As Aaron was about to open the front door, it opened violently, the motion nearly knocking them back, as Aaron's husband Eric launched himself at Aaron.

"I thought I heard your voice. You're okay?" he said, taking Aaron in a hug and giving him a kiss. Aaron dropped the packs and put both hands on Eric's face, holding his gaze before kissing him back.

"I'm fine," he replied, smiling and nodding, as he hugged Eric.

Ellie felt awkwardly like she was invading their personal moment, and tried to shrink into the darkness, but Eric caught her movement.

"Well, you going to introduce me?" Eric said, playfully hitting Aaron on the shoulder.

"Of course, but let's go inside," he said, picking up the packs, Eric taking one from him and leading them into the house.

It was dimly lit in the living room, but Ellie could see how spacious it was. Fully furnished with stylish fittings, artwork, decor, it was well coordinated. She was taken aback by how normal it looked, and couldn't shake the feeling of being in another world.

When she had sought shelter from abandoned houses while she was on her own, the houses never looked clean or put together or lived in. They were often ransacked, furniture and belongings missing or tossed around in heaps, boards on windows, cupboards torn apart. Property was not a relevant concept anymore.

Eric led them into the kitchen, where he dropped the packs on the floor. There was more light on in the kitchen, and when Eric turned around and got a full glimpse of Ellie, he tried to hide his grimace with a smile, but she caught it, and smirked back at him.

"What happened to you guys?" He asked, taking in the blood and dirt that caked both of them. His brows furrowed in concern at their disheveled appearances.

"It's a long story, but I'll start by introducing the woman I owe my life to. This is Ellie…" he said, gesturing to Ellie, who blushed and ducked her head at the mention of any heroic effort she may have made.

"Jamison, Ellie Jamison. Nice to meet you," she said, smiling at Eric, who looked her up and down and then launched into her, wrapping his arms around her slight frame, pulling her into a crushing hug. She felt subconscious all of a sudden, aware of her sweat, blood and dirt caked body, how she must smell, how her hair was greasy in its long braid and clung to her neck, how stiff her dried clothes must feel. None of that seemed to stop him from crushing her with his embrace. He held her tightly for a moment before letting her go, aware she appeared taken aback.

"I'm sorry, Ellie. Anyone that saves Aaron's life is family to me. You'll understand why I did that. I'm a hugger, it can't be helped." He said sweetly with a smile. She smiled in return, shakily at first.

"It's been a long time since I've been hugged like that," she replied softly, unsure of what else to say.

"I bet. Were you alone? For a long time?" He asked, as he moved behind the counter and pulled a pitcher of water out of the fridge. _A fridge?_

"Uh….uh yeah. I have been," she answered after a briefly pause while she stared at the fridge bizarrely. "I'm sorry, I feel a little like I'm in bizarro land. You have electricity?"

"You bet. Electricity from solar panels, running water, septic systems…all sorts of amenities. Funny how a couple years ago those weren't amenities and now it's the oddest thing ever to see," he commented as he handed her a glass of cold water. "So where are you from?"

"I'm from Virginia, south of Richmond."

"Have you been on your own since the turn?" Eric asked as Aaron started unloading his pack onto the kitchen counter.

"Um… not always," she said, uncomfortable with the interrogation as friendly as it was.

"Eric, she's exhausted and she has a bum ankle. You remember what that's like. She needs to see Denise but I thought we could offer her a shower first. She's practically dead on her feet."

"Oh I understand. Twisted my ankle a few months ago on a run, that's where we met Daryl and his family. Awesome people. Can't wait for you to meet everyone. Listen, you think you're in bizzaro land now, just wait till you get under some hot running water, and you'll be in for the shock of your life," he quipped. Her eyes widened at the thought of hot running water.

"I'm sold," She said, smiling widely. The thought of warm running water hitting her skin had her muscles twitching with anticipation. It was almost enough to soothe her aching muscles just thinking about it.

"Let me just get you some stuff and I'll show you where the shower is," Eric said as Aaron continued to unload. She reached for her pack to grab her second shirt, it wasn't clean but it was in substantially better shape than the one she was wearing. "Oh leave that, I'm sure I can dig up a spare shirt and some sweats for you to wear. We can take you to the supply garage tomorrow and get you some clothes, unless you wanna keep what you're wearing? We can wash them," he said, making a face at her.

"Judging by that face, I probably shouldn't keep them. Pretty sure they will be able to walk on their own once I take them off." She giggled at the thought.

She bent down and unlaced her boots, not wanting to trek dirt any further into the house, vowing to herself to clean up once she was done. She followed Eric up the stairs, careful with the amount of pressure on her ankle, holding onto the banister. She limped after him down the hall as he showed her where the bathroom was. He looked at her with concern as she made her way down the hall, trying not to put her hands on the clean walls but trying to keep herself upright.

"Boy you really did a number on that ankle, hey?"

"Yeah, I'm hoping it's just a sprain, but it might be worse than that," She said, trying to tamp down the dread at the thought it might be broken.

"Here's the bathroom, don't worry about water, there will be enough for Aaron and Daryl even if you take a long shower. We have a full septic system, so take advantage," he added with a wink. He moved to the closet adjacent to the bathroom and pulled out a fluffy towel for her. "Give me a minute, I'm gonna grab you some clothes."

He jogged to the bedroom at the other end of the hall and she could hear a dresser drawer open and shut.

"Here you go. You're pretty small, and I'm kinda skinny so these should fit, but the pants might be long on ya," he said, handing her a v-neck white tee-shirt and a pair of black, wide leg sweats.

Ellie's eyes watered as she held onto the clean linen and clothes, unsure of how to feel, suddenly overwhelmed by how unreal this all seemed.

"Thank you so much, Eric. I really appreciate this. I, um… I don't know what I was expecting but this is just beyond anything I could have imagined. It's been a long time, and I am so grateful for this," she said, tearing up a bit, as she smiled and thanked him.

"Hey. No problem. I am happy Aaron came home in one piece. I always worry when he goes, especially for such a long time. Even though he's with Daryl and I couldn't ask for a better person for him to be with, I can't help but worry. It's a tough world out there. You must be tough to be here, with us, alive and able to protect yourself. I hope that you will stay with us, make us stronger," He said sincerely, smiling a huge smile at her. He hugged her once more, before releasing her and shutting the bathroom door, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

Her body tingled from the physical contact. It had been so long since anyone had touched her like that, in such a welcoming friendly, loving manner. It felt so foreign but at the same time it felt like coming home to something she had longed for. She sighed, and turned to place the towel and clothes on the counter. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror as she put the linens down and gasped. Her jaw dropped as she took in the mess that she barely recognized as herself. She couldn't remember the last time she had looked at herself in the mirror, but she was certain that the reflection staring back at her currently was not the last reflection she remembered.

She could see why Eric had grimaced when he first saw her. She had smears of blood and dirt on her face and neck, down into her cleavage. She grimaced herself when she thought of where the blood had come from. Dark circles outlined her eyes from her lack of sleep, and her cheeks were tanned and hollowed from sun exposure and malnutrition. Her hair was matted in a very messy ponytail braid that clung to her neck. She took the hair tie out of the braid and tried to undo the braid but it was difficult to budge. She pushed it back off her neck, and took her coat off. It was stiff with dirt, blood and sweat, and she dropped it to the floor where it fell heavily.

Her grey tee-shirt clung to her torso, and she lifted that off as well, quickly brandishing that to the floor. She gasped when she saw her rib cage, poking through her sallow, scarred skin. The skin under her shirt was several shades paler than the areas exposed to sun over all her long treks in the wilderness. Old pink scars dotted the pale flesh, across her abdomen and torso. She absently traced a few of the more prominent scars with her fingers, remembering the familiar bumps and smoothed ridges, flashing back to the moment when she woke up in the hospital all those years ago. Shaking her head of that muddy thought, she continued to disrobe, adding her pants and undergarments to the pile of filthy rags.

A long jagged pink scar slashed across her lower abdomen, and when she caught sight of it, she grimaced. She covered it with her hand and sighed, closing her eyes, remembering a past life that occasionally still haunted her dreams. It had been almost 9 years since that night, and she had worked so hard to put the memories away for good, but would never be able to fully forget as she had a trail of handmade marks across her pale skin to refresh her memory. Her eyes teared up and she sniffed softly, remembering when the doctor told her they couldn't repair all her organs, that she would never have kids. She shuddered, and her hand flexed across her lower belly, as she returned to her mental countdown, putting the memory back in the box in the back of her mind with all the rest.

Her eyes traveled down her legs, taking in the large purple bruising that bloomed from her swollen ankle up her calf, shaking her head at herself. She moved towards the shower stall, a big glass enclosure, and turned on the water. She couldn't hide her amazement when the water warmed to a soothing temperature. She cranked the heat and climbed in, audibly sighing at the contact of the hot water on her skin. Her muscles tensed initially at the temperature, but then relaxed as she moved around the water stream, letting the water cascade over all her aching muscles. Dirt blood and sweat flowed off her body and out of her hair onto the shower floor. She cringed when she saw the muddy water flowing into the drain. She grabbed a shampoo bottle and lathered her matted hair, taking her time to let the water soak in. She was careful around the cut on her head where she had hit the boulder, gently working around the tender swollen flesh. Her long black locks clung to her back once rinsed and clean and again she sighed. The feeling was so luxurious she could not contain it.

She finished up, not wanting to use up all the water, knowing the guys still had to shower too, and stepped out onto the fluffy bath mat. The bathroom was full of hot steam, and she swiped the mirror with her wet hand as she grabbed the towel and wrapped it around her. Looking in the mirror she thought she looked a little less frightening, but still did not recognize herself. She stared into her own eyes and recounted the events of the past three days and the surreal feeling of Alexandria. She wasn't sure what to make of everything, but did not feel a sense of dread. Usually her gut instinct was pretty sure, and right now she was starting to feel like she had maybe made the right choice. The thought and the potential it held was overwhelming to her. She felt a sudden wave of dizziness as the fog from the shower enveloped her and she felt suffocated. Her breathing picked up and her heart rate as well, and she felt like she was going to faint. She whipped open the bathroom door to let some of the steam out, and took a few deep breaths as a blast of cool air hit her.

Daryl jumped as she opened the bathroom door right as he was passing on his way to his bedroom. The site of the lithe woman wrapped in nothing but a towel took him aback. His mouth went dry and he swiftly averted his gaze, but not without noting her toned arms, and lean, toned legs, scattered water droplets dotting her skin. His gaze landed at her feet, where he decided it was safest. He swallowed hard and mumbled an apology.

"Oh, I'm sorry Daryl," she said, suddenly aware of the fact that there was nothing hiding her full nakedness aside from a towel that barely skimmed her thighs. She clutched the towel tightly, her knuckles whitening.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, just a bit dizzy. Too much hot steam I think," she said, gesturing behind her, as the steam billowed out from the bathroom behind her.

"Yeah, that first hot shower is something, isn't it?" he said, smirking at the thought of how long it had actually taken to get him in one, but how wonderful it had felt.

"Feels like I'm dreaming," she said, smiling. Her wet hair clung to her neck and back, and she reached up, twisting the long locks and pulling them over her shoulder, an old habit. She smiled shyly at him but he refused to avert his gaze from her feet, a furrow across his brow as he noticed the darkening bruise on the outside of her ankle, traveling up her calf. His gaze followed the coloring, and then continued slowly, taking in her knee, her thigh, noticing a shiny pink scar that traveled along her thigh, disappearing into the gap between her legs. He wondered about that scar and where it led. He paused for a moment before shaking his head and awkwardly clearing his throat.

"I should go get Denise for ya," he said, coughing as his throat remained dry.

"Thanks. I really appreciate everything. You guys have been so wonderful. I honestly don't know how to thank you," she said, clutching her towel as she shifted her weight to her good leg.

"'s no problem, you did save us, you know," he replied, smirking.

"I didn't," she replied, blushing and ducking her head. "Just took a chance."

"You did good," he said, his praise genuine. He felt restless, the need to escape bubbling up through his chest, causing him to shift uncomfortably in the suddenly too small hallway. He cleared his throat, and nodded his head at her before continuing to his room to drop some things off.

Ellie watched him lumber down the hallway to his room and shut the door. She sighed and turned around, closing the bathroom door behind her and leaning against it momentarily, letting her head clear. She leaned her head back against the door, and took a few deep breaths. It was hard to fight against the wave of overwhelming feelings building up inside her gut, that this place had so much potential and that this could be a sanctuary from whatever was happening in the world beyond the walls.

Putting those thoughts aside, she unwrapped the towel from her body and dried her hair. Hanging the towel on the door she reached for the clothing that Eric had given her and donned the sweats, which bathed her legs in warmth and coziness. She tied the waste tightly, as they were a bit baggy on her, and pooled at her feet. The tee-shirt fit her well, and she tucked the front in to the front of the pants. She collected her dirty clothes and folded them as best she could, intent on washing them as soon as she was able to.

She searched the bathroom for a brush, finding only a comb, and ran it through her damp locks, gathered and twirled them into a knot at the base of her skull. She took a last look in the mirror, satisfied that she looked as presentable as she was going to with borrowed clothes and a hacked and sallow appearance. She couldn't complain though, she was warm, and clean, and safe. Three things she hadn't felt in so long she had forgotten how comforting they could be.

Opening the bathroom door carefully this time, she glanced down the hall. Daryl's door was open and the room was quiet. She swallowed hard, and made her way down the hallway to the stair well, where she gingerly made her way down the steps, trying not to trip, unable to put barely any weight on her bad foot. Aaron greeted her at the bottom of the stairs, taking her pile of clothes from her.

"Oh thanks," Ellie said, smiling as she stopped at the bottom of the stairs, letting out a breath she had been holding in while trying to navigate the staircase.

"No problem. Feel better?" he replied, grinning at her. He looked her over, studying her face. She noticed he had washed up, his face and hands were clean, and he had on clean clothes.

"Suddenly very tired, and sore," she said, smirking. "You got a chance to wash up even though I was hogging the shower?" she added, feeling guilty all of a sudden.

He read the flash of guilt that crossed her face and attempted to reassure her. "Just quickly cleaned up, I'll hop in the shower before bed, don't you worry."

"Thank you, for this."

"Ellie, you're welcome. I would do this for anyone, don't go thinking you're special or anything," he said mocking her.

"Oh shut up," she said back, smirking. "Of course I'm special," she added with a wide grin. She shifted her weight off her left foot, wiggling it to get the feeling of pins and needles to go away.

"Eric has gone to get Denise for you, let's get you over to the couch and get that foot up," he said, gesturing her to the living room, helping her along.

"I thought Daryl was going to go get Denise?" she asked as he helped ease her onto the couch and grabbed some pillows for her.

"He got a little sidetracked. Went to go touch base with Rick, I think. Asked Eric to go for him."

"Who's Rick?"

"He's basically the leader here. He will want to meet you, at some point. He's a good man. Daryl's known him since the turn, I think. He's gotten this group through some pretty tough stuff. I think he is going to like you," he said with a smile. "How's that?" he asked as he gently placed her ankle on the pillows he had piled up for her.

"It's good," she said with a smile, relaxing into the softness of the couch.

"How's your head?"

"It's okay, I had a little dizzy spell earlier, but its feeling okay right now," she said, sighing as her head settled into the pillow behind it. "Shit, if I wake up and this is all a dream I'm gonna be pissed," She quipped, throwing an arm across her forehead as she relaxed.

"It's not a dream. I will remind you of that in the morning," He replied, smirking. He disappeared momentarily and returned with a glass of water and two pills. "Take these," he said, handing them to her.

She swallowed the Tylenol with a gulp of water and leaned back into the pillow. She closed her eyes and relished in the comfort that enveloped her as Aaron covered her in a blanket. She couldn't tell how long it was but suddenly Aaron was touching her shoulder, waking her. She opened her eyes and jumped slightly at the jostling, before registering where she was and who was around her. Eric had returned, and with him were two women, a blonde with glasses who appeared slightly uncomfortable, and a brunette with a soft but questioning gaze, standing beside Eric and slightly in front of the blonde, almost protectively.

"Sorry to wake you, this is Denise, and Tara," Aaron gestured to the blonde then the brunette.

"Sorry Aaron, I didn't think I would fall asleep that fast." She apologized, and nodded at the two women in front of her. "Hi," She said shyly.

"Denise, Tara, this is Ellie. Thanks for coming to look at her ankle, I appreciate it," He added. He whispered something to Eric, and laid his hand on Denise's shoulder, squeezing gently, before nodding at Ellie and turning and heading up the stairs.

"Hi," Denise said, with a friendly but hesitant smile. "What happened to you?"

"I um, tried to relive my days as a track and field runner, but got a bit impeded by a misplaced log. I was never good at hurdles." She quipped, smirking.

Tara, the brunette laughed at this, as she opened up a bag for Denise and pulled out a couple of things. Denise looked at her questionably for a moment before cracking a smile.

"Seriously?" she added.

"No. I was just kidding. Actually I was running away from Aaron and Daryl. I, uh, thought they were trouble, but I was mistaken," she said sheepishly, glancing at Eric who just smiled at her.

"That makes more sense," Denise said giggling softly.

Ellie pulled up her pant leg, revealing her swollen bruised ankle. Denise gently palpated her pulses and gingerly picked it up off the pillow to check her range of motion.

"Did you hear a crack? Can you put weight on it?" she asked as she poked at the joint and manipulated it, causing Ellie to wince.

"I don't think it's broken, well, maybe a hairline fracture. We had a long ways to walk, and I just pushed through the pain, longer than I should have, I think," she admitted, chastising herself. "It's hard to put any weight on it now though, after being off it for so long."

"I wish we had some ice, which would help with the swelling and the pain, but I can splint it for you and wrap it up."

"I think that's best. I will probably have to stay off it for a couple weeks. I'm just glad that there's no vascular impairment or compartment syndrome."

"You know your medical stuff?" Denise asked, looking at her questionably, studying her.

"I'm a nurse. Or I was. Once. Guess that doesn't matter much now."

Denise and Tara shared a look as Tara passed Denise an old air cast they had scrounged from somewhere.

"What?" Ellie asked, catching the surreptitious glance.

"What kind of nursing did you do?" Denise asked, avoiding Ellie's question.

"Anything from surgical to emergency to palliative. Peds and palliative is where I spent most of my career though. My emergency experience was brief," she said, pausing, averting her gaze.

"Didn't like it?"

"No. It didn't like me," she said, her face changing, sadness encroaching briefly over her features.

"We could use someone with any emergency experience. Any medical experience really." Denise said, as she wrapped Ellie's ankle with a tensor to keep the air cast in place. "Once we get that ankle healed."

"Really?"

"Yeah. We would definitely appreciate anything you can offer us in that department. Right now it's just me, Tara helps and sometimes a couple of the others, but having someone with experience would be awesome. People tend to acquire injuries around here," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Um, okay. Well, I'd love to be useful, in any way that I can."

"Great!" Tara exclaimed, smiling widely. Denise finished wrapping up the ankle and gently placed her foot back on the pillows.

"Awesome, we are glad to have you. Now, the ankle is taken care of for now, like you said, you should stay off it for a couple of weeks. Anything else you need me to look at?"

"Ah, no I don't think so. I hit my head a couple days ago, had some concussion symptoms but they are fading."

Denise nodded, grabbing a pen light and checking Ellie's pupils. Ellie turned her head and unraveled her hair, pushing it aside so Denise could check the wound on the back of her head.

"The wound is closed, looks a little inflamed still, I will come back and check it tomorrow. You really look like you need some rest, why don't we let you be for now and come back and see you in the morning?"

Ellie nodded silently, smiling at the two women.

"Welcome, Ellie, to Alexandria. We hope you will be willing to stay with us," Tara said, smiling genuinely at Ellie as she packed their medical bag back up. "We'll see you in the morning." She said, as she reached out and squeezed Ellie's hand.

Denise smiled at Ellie too and followed Tara out, touching Eric gently on the shoulder as he whispered a thank you to them. Ellie could not get over the welcoming friendly nature of these people. A small voice in the back of her head wondered if they were always this trusting and was that really wise nowadays. She shook that uncertainty off, rationalizing that they probably assumed that she had been grilled by Aaron and Daryl which wasn't wholly untrue. She could feel the fatigue washing over all her muscles as she sighed and settled into the couch. Aaron reappeared down the stairs just as the women exited the house, waving at them before approaching the couch.

"How you feeling?" he asked, sitting on the coffee table next to her.

"Grand," she said, smiling. "You look better," she added, winking at him.

"I feel better. A hot shower does wonders."

"It sure does. I hope it's something I never take for granted again."

"You won't, I guarantee it. Can we get you anything? Eric set up the spare room down here for you, we can help you get to bed if you need it."

"Actually, would you mind if I just stayed here for now? I'm comfortable and I don't want to bother anyone. Thank you though, for setting up a room for me."

"No problem," Eric replied smiling at her.

"You don't need to fuss over me, really. I'm exhausted, I'm just gonna crash, as you saw I already did," she said, giggling.

"Okay. If you're sure. Maybe we'll just head to bed then and let you get some rest."

"Thank you again. I cannot say it enough," she said, reaching out and grabbing Aaron's hand as he rose from the coffee table.

"You'll get tired of it eventually."

"No way." She quipped, smiling as she settled in to the couch, pulling up the blanket. Her eyes were heavy but she fought to keep them open as she watched the men exit the room and head up the stairs. She smiled as she watched them, and a calmness settled in to her chest as she closed her heavy eyelids. Sleep enveloped quickly, as her breathing slowed to an even, deep pace and she let the comfort of the cushions wrap her aching muscles in relaxation. She couldn't have said how quickly she fell asleep but it was monumentally faster than any night she had been on the road.

The sound of the door clicking shut woke her with a start and she jumped up at the sound.

"Sorry, didn't mean to wake ya," Daryl said softly, ducking his head as he kicked off his boots.

"s'okay." Ellie muttered, laying back down. It was still dark, and quiet in the house. "What time is it?"

"Bout 1:30."

Ellie nodded and settled back into the softness of the couch. It would be hard to turn off the hyper-awareness of her surroundings she had carried through months alone on the road. Even subtle sounds echoed loudly in her bones.

"Doc come and see ya?" he asked, edging towards the sofa, pointing at her foot.

"Yeah. She's nice. Offered me a job, even."

"That's good," He said, nodding. He scanned her prone body, his eyes connecting with hers, causing her to smile.

"Yeah. It is. Thanks. For taking me in. You won't regret it," She said softly, smiling.

"Weren't my choice." He offered, shrugging his shoulders noncommittally.

"Oh. Well somehow, I think it would have been your say for me not to come, if that's what you wanted."

"S'pose so." He nodded. "You didn't give me any reason not to bring you back. You got a lot to offer. It's a waste to let you be out there by yourself when you can help make a group stronger."

Ellie giggled softly, and shook her head. "You give me too much credit."

"You don't give yourself enough." He replied simply. He stared at her, his eyes darkening as he chewed on his lip. "Get some rest. It's been a long couple days."

"You too." She replied, her grey eyes sparking lightly as she met his gaze. He nodded in response, holding her gaze for a moment before turning and heading up the stairs. She lay awake for a while, staring into the darkness before the silence of the house and the darkness lulled her into a settled sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Ellie casually limped around the clinic, taking it all in.

"You think you'll like it?" Tara asked, as she stuffed some supplies into her pack.

"This is great," she replied, smiling as she surveyed the large room, fingering the linens on the beds as she passed, eyeing the dividers that isolated the stretchers from the two beds.

What once had been someone's living room had carefully been converted into a working clinic, a makeshift ER basically. Two twin beds jutted out from the main wall, while three stretcher "bays" sat adjacent to them, each with a fabricated divider for privacy. A desk sat against the far wall, with three bookshelves beside it, housing varying medical supplies and books. On the other side of the room was an open kitchen, with a large island that housed a sink.

"Come check this out," Tara said, gesturing for Ellie to follow her down the hall off the kitchen. Ellie limped slowly behind her, and Tara waited patiently for her to catch up.

She led Ellie into a bedroom with a double bed, and an ensuite bathroom. It was simply outfitted with a side table and dresser, and a monitor for vital signs and IV pole sat at the bedside.

"For anyone that needs a little longer stay," she explained simply.

Ellie nodded in understanding as she pulled open a dresser drawer to see it stocked with linens. She thumbed through the clean towels, the soft cotton feeling good against her skin.

Ellie was happy to be out of Aaron's house. She had been ready to crawl out of her skin with restlessness and boredom. Her eagerness to prove her worth was also a motivating factor. She had done everything she could in and around Aaron's house for the past six days, not necessarily compliant with her "bed rest" as ordered.

She cleaned, did laundry, cooked, and tended the garden, anything she could get her hands on. She knew if she didn't move or do something she would go crazy. This place was just too quiet, and after two years of anticipating the need to bolt, she just couldn't suppress it overnight.

Aaron gave her a hard time about resting her ankle, any time he would catch her up he would direct her back to the couch or her room. About the only time he didn't give her a hard time was when she was out on the porch swing. She found the luxury of the swing too irresistible. She would seek it out most evenings, curling up with one of the books Carl had lent her, getting lost in the words as the swing gently swayed back and forth, taking her away from reality.

Ellie smiled to herself as she slowly closed the dresser drawer. She hoped desperately that the awe inspiring security of this place would not wear off, that she would always feel grateful for the situation she was now in. Those little nagging doubts grew smaller and smaller every day, though every now and then one would bubble to the surface. She decided, for the first time in a long time to ignore those shaky doubts, and let the safety and security of this place take hold of her.

"This is perfect," she said softly, grinning widely.

"You like it? Awesome!" Tara exclaimed. "We've only had to use this room a couple of times, last was for Carl," she explained, glancing at the bed, and grimacing.

"What happened?" Ellie asked, as she turned and leaned against the dresser. She didn't want to pry to Carl, it had clearly been something traumatic. He seemed well adjusted and accepting, she had thought, when she first met him. He was strong, admirably so, something that was necessary nowadays.

"We were overrun. Hundreds of walkers. He got shot while we were all fighting. It was crazy. Denise fixed him up as best she could, saved his life," she ended, smiling with pride.

Ellie's eyes widened at the thought. Moments ago she was thinking this was a safe haven and now she was being told about a herd of walkers overrunning this place. Her heart rate momentarily amped up and she swallowed hard.

"We got through it," Tara added, noting Ellie's sudden pause. "We all banded together and fought, cleared them all. Rebuilt the walls. Even expanded them. It really pulled us all together," she explained, nodding her head reassuringly.

Ellie smiled shakily in response, her unease tamped for the moment. Tara put her hand on Ellie's shoulder, giving her a gentle pat before leading her back out to the main room. Ellie gently put weight on her sore ankle as she walked, testing it out gingerly. It held her weight, though it was still sore. It felt miles better than it did a week ago though. She was grateful for that. They settled in the main room, Ellie leaning against the kitchen counter while Tara finished packing her bag.

"How long you gonna be gone for?" Ellie asked.

"A couple days, not too long. Glenn and Heath planned an easy one, gonna take a couple of the less experienced guys with us, get them used to going out. A lot of the people that were here when we arrived hadn't spent much time outside. We have to teach them how to defend themselves, how to survive. So that we can thrive."

Ellie nodded, understanding what she meant. This place could lull you into security quickly, but eventually the outside would find its way in. Sounded a lot like it already had.

"How's the ankle?" Tara asked, nodding her head towards Ellie's left foot, noting how she absently circled it while she leaned against the counter.

"Better," Ellie replied, flexing it. She had removed the air cast and wrapped it in a tensor. The bruising was still there, now a disgusting shade of greenish yellow, but the swelling had gone down significantly. "It's a lot better. I'll be running again in no time," she said, smirking.

Tara laughed softly, remembering what Ellie had told them when they met her.

"Just don't run away from here, okay?" Tara said, jokingly, a lilt of seriousness in her tone.

"Promise," Ellie replied, smiling.

Their moment was interrupted when Denise opened the front door, carrying a box of supplies.

"Check it out, they got a good haul," she exclaimed, dropping the box on the counter. "Oh great, you're here!" she said to Ellie when she noticed her in the kitchen, grinning widely. "What do you think?"

"This is really amazing," she said, nodding. "How did you set it all up?"

"Oh, well, the first doctor, Pete, got things put together. I was just the back up. Not really good at this stuff," she said, grimacing and ducking her head. "But I'm trying," she added, looking at Tara and smiling.

"Heard you fixed up Carl. That couldn't have been easy," Ellie replied, smiling reassuringly.

"Ah, my stitches could use some work, too bad we are short on supply, otherwise maybe I'd practice on something, but I don't want to waste what we got."

"Makes sense. I used to be pretty good, dated a med student, a long time ago, he taught me a few tricks," she said, pausing after the last detail. A pained expression passed briefly over her face, and she shook it off quickly. Wasn't like her to share something so casually. It caught her a bit off guard.

"Oh, maybe you can teach me sometime? Next time someone needs stitching up, which will likely be in a day or two? Seems to happen quite frequently around her," she said, laughing softly. She picked up on Ellie's unease, and changed the subject. "How are you settling in?"

"Good. Getting used to things, "she replied, with a hesitant smile. "Hard to just go back, you know?" she said, her brow furrowing.

"Yeah, it's not like it was, that's for sure. Though to look at this place, it might seem that way. But we all know it's different," Tara said, nodding her head as she came up to Denise, put her hand on Denise's shoulder, and peaked in the box she had brought in. "Oh, they did well! Where did they get all this stuff?" she asked as she started rifling through the box of supplies

"Abraham said there was a walk in clinic in this little strip mall they hit up, totally untouched. We've got lots of stuff here we can work with, gauze and bandages, bp cuffs, syringes, medications. This was a good haul. If there was a lottery I'd say we should buy a ticket," Denise said, laughing.

Ellie limped over, and looked through the box, pulling out a couple of supplies and checking package dates.

"This stuff is still good, not too expired," she said, impressed. "This is a lucky haul. You need help to organize it?" she asked, looking for a task.

"That'd be great," Denise replied smiling. Together they unloaded the box onto the counter, and Ellie started grouping things together to do a count.

"Here," Tara said, handing Ellie a clipboard. "We try to keep count of everything, inventory so we can make better lists for runs."

Ellie nodded, taking the clipboard and diving into the task of inventorying all the items.

"Did they have any trouble?" Tara asked Denise as Ellie worked quietly, happy for something to do.

"Not this time. Abraham, Daryl and Spencer went. They seem to steer clear when it's someone strong. How they know, I just…" Denise explained, shaking her head. "You'll be careful?"

"Always," Tara replied, giving Denise a soft kiss on the lips.

Ellie smiled to herself, trying not to eavesdrop on the conversation. It was good to see how people could still find each other in all this awfulness. They clearly loved each other, and it was good to see something good.

The couple excused themselves while Ellie meticulously inventoried the new supplies, leaving her to concentrate on the work, which was good for her brain. It felt good to have a focus that involved more than the typical 'where to eat, where to sleep and when to run' that had churned in a cycle through her brain for the past two years.

She was so caught up in her task she didn't hear the door open. Glenn and Daryl walked in and shut the door behind them, Glenn saying hello, and Daryl nodding at Ellie when she finally looked up.

"Good, you guys got the supplies," Daryl said, making his way to the counter and picking up a box of gauze. He carried a bag in and put it on the counter out of the way of all the medical stuff, and started tossing the small box in his hands casually.

"Yeah, thanks, it's a good haul," she replied, smiling and nodding at the stuff laid out. "I hear you're getting ready to go out, Glenn?"

"Yeah, just came by to see if Tara was ready to go," he said. "How are things? You settling in okay?"

"I am thanks," she replied with a smile. "Glad to be useful now," she added, nodding at the clipboard.

"Well, we are happy to have you here. Don't worry you'll have plenty to do around here, once you're all healed up," he said with a smile. "You know where Tara is?"

"Uh, I'm not sure where they went, they were just here not long ago. Might have gone upstairs," she said smiling slyly, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, okay, if you see her you wanna send her out, we are just packing the van."

"Will do. Thanks for the warm welcome the other day, it was so nice," she said, thinking about how he and Maggie had come to Aaron's the other night to make dinner and get to know her a little better in a comfortable environment. At some point Monopoly had been pulled out, and then things really got interesting. It was the most normal evening she had had in more than two years, almost felt like things were supposed to feel.

"It was fun. Anytime you want to let me win at Monopoly we will come back over," he said with a grin.

"Ha!" she exclaimed laughing loudly. Daryl looked at her as her face flushed and she got suddenly shy. "I was just lucky is all."

"Smart is more like it," Daryl said nonchalantly. "Monopoly's all about the strategy. You got that down."

"You didn't even play," she said, smirking and giving him a long side look.

Daryl just shrugged in response. He playfully tossed the box he had been playing with at her, and she caught it with her right hand, plunking it back down on the counter.

"You're gonna mess up my count," she said softly, teasing. "You going out with these guys?" she asked, gesturing to Glenn and to Tara who was making her way down the stairs.

"Not on this run. Just got back, the bike's acting up, gonna work on it tonight," he replied.

Ellie nodded, turning her attention to the stuff on the counter, putting the clipboard down on the counter, the pen she was writing with tucked in her bun, a very old habit. She knew she'd be looking for it in a while, completely forgetting where it was. At some point while she was counting she had taken one of the collected stethoscopes and draped it around her neck. It seemed so natural to wear, she didn't' even notice it until Daryl pointed it out to her.

"You made yourself right at home. Looks good," he said, pointing at the stethoscope. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly as he pointed it out.

"Oh yeah, old habits die hard," she said, taking it off her neck and placing it on the counter with the other two.

"Holy, we got a party down here, or what?" Tara asked, bounding down the last steps. "Ready, Freddy," she said, smiling at Glenn as she reached for her pack. He nodded at her and smiled, grabbing her pack from her before she could swing it over her shoulder.

Daryl grabbed the bag he had carried in, and brought it over to Denise, nodding at her. She grinned widely as she opened the bag.

"You got it?" she asked, excitedly.

"Yeah, had to search a bit, but it was there," he replied, ducking his head, his hair brushing over his eyes.

"Awesome thanks," she said, smiling before jogging over to Tara and pulling out an orange can, handing it to Tara. "You get the rest when you come back in one piece." She said, as Tara took the can from her and launched into her for a hug.

Ellie felt suddenly uncomfortable in the space. The number of people around her and the displays of affection, caused a level of discomfort she was not prepared for. Her skin began to twinge and she felt suddenly restless and insecure with being a spectator to this personal display, when she was just getting to know everyone. She shuffled along the counter, and gingerly limped behind the group, edging for the door.

"Denise, I'll come back and help you finish this up in a bit, okay?" she said, as she made her way to the door. "Have a safe trip you guys," she added, smiling at Tara and Glenn, who nodded a thank you at her. Daryl watched her walk towards the door, his brow furrowed in concern, and he moved swiftly to hold the door open for her as she limped out. He nodded at Glenn and the girls and quietly followed her out. The three of them watched Ellie and Daryl leave, sharing looks of confusion with each other before continuing their conversation.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good," she said, nodding her head as she limped along the porch. "Just needed some air."

Daryl nodded, bringing his lip in between his teeth to chew on absently. He casually strolled beside her as she limped down the porch steps and along the street.

"It will get easier, you know," he said softly, not looking at her as they walked. He smirked at the advice, not being one that would have listened to it himself a few months ago.

"I know. I'm tryin'," she added, a small smile travelling across her lips. "Everyone is so close and so caring to each other. It's intimidating."

"Been through a lot together. Doesn't mean there ain't room for new people. Don't forget that."

"I won't, I'm not," she reassured, nodding her head. "Thank you. I know, I know, I've said that a lot. But I mean it."

Daryl nodded and shrugged, not sure how to respond to her. They continued to walk in silence till they got back to the house, Ellie limping awkwardly up the steps, shrugging off his offer to help her.

"I got it, thanks," she said, holding her hand out to stop him, making it up the steps with minimal struggle. She took a deep breath once she got to the top, and let it out slowly. She made her way over to the porch swing, and settled in.

Daryl nodded at her, satisfied, and turned and walked down the steps, heading towards the garage. Ellie watched him walk away, and smiled when he glanced at her, his eyes narrowing. He pointed at her head before scratching his own and disappearing out of sight. She reached up and patted her bun, finding the uncapped pen sticking out, and removed it, laughing softly to herself at the sight she must have been.


	7. Chapter 7

So so so so sorry for the delay in this update. Life just kind of happened this week and I did not have as much time as I would have liked to focus on this. I should have a couple more updates very soon as I tinker with some stuff. Hope you are all enjoying! Thank you everyone who has reviewed, I love reading your reviews :). Cheers! xoxo Byn

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A strong knock on the door woke Ellie out of a fitful sleep. She opened her eyes to see the first light of the morning peeking through partially drawn shades. The dim light cast a dull glow across the bed, hitting her eyes, causing her to shield them with her hand. She groaned and rolled over onto her back, trying to register her wakefulness, when another solid knock jarred her to the present.

She shifted off the mattress, forcing herself to an upright position, and limped over towards the door, gently pulling it open enough she could peer around it. Aaron's face greeted her, a look of worry worn across it. His brow furrowed when he saw her disheveled appearance. Her hair was a mess, a loose braid with multiple stray strands jutting out in various directions. Her tank top and shorts were askew, and circles outlined the bottom of her eyelids.

"Sorry to wake you so early," Aaron said apologetically.

"S'okay, what's up? What time is it?" she asked, her voice raspy. She rubbed her face to wake herself up.

"It's early. Listen, they need you over at the clinic. Glenn and Tara are back, their group… It's not good," he said, gravely.

"Oh, okay," she replied, nodding her head, her heart rate ramping up. "Just give me a minute."

She quickly threw on some clothes and whipped open her bedroom door. Aaron greeted her with a nod, and led her out of the house and down to the clinic. She noticed a couple people milling about outside the clinic as she limped up the steps, causing them to pause in their pacing and turn to watch her. She let the discomfort of their stares wash over her, and she shook it off as she pushed past them and into the clinic.

It was abuzz with activity inside the clinic. Tara and Glenn stood beside one of the twin beds, where Heath lay bleeding from his thigh. Tara had a cut across her forehead, and Glenn was bruised and beaten.

"What the hell happened?" Ellie exclaimed, pushing up her sleeves and heading over to the bedside, ignoring the twinge in her ankle as she moved quickly. She grabbed some scissors from the tray Denise had opened up and laid across the bed, swiftly cutting the leg off Heath's pants, exposing a large jagged hole that was oozing fresh blood. Denise moved in a frantic, scrambled pace as she assessed Heath's limp form and tried to decide where to start.

Something clicked in Ellie's brain, years of experience in some dusty crevice of her mind suddenly awakening with life, and she went into nurse mode. She grabbed a pile of 4x4 gauze and slapped it over the wound, putting pressure on it with one hand, while grabbing a suture kit from the pile of supplies on the bed and tossing it at Denise.

"He took a spear to the leg. A fucking spear. I don't even know what happened. We were loading the car, and then, just, they were everywhere," Tara exclaimed, her voice raspy and ragged. "Kat and Steve, they're, they're gone," she whispered, swallowing hard.

"Here, put pressure on this," Ellie said to Glenn, indicating to the leg wound. He took her spot, and she ran to the shelf on the side of the room and grabbed IV supplies and a bag of saline. Like riding a bike, the skills came back to her easily, and she started an IV in his arm and started some fluids running, Denise nodding at her as she opened the suture kit.

Moving back to position and guiding Glenn aside, she peeled back the dressing on Heath's thigh. It was still oozing blood but slower. She quickly squirted saline in and around the wound and Denise began suturing messily. Ellie manipulated the wound edges to press together to form a tighter seal and coached Denise through the suturing.

Tara and Glenn looked on, and Aaron watched from the kitchen. Tara sat down on the bed beside Heath's and held a hand to her head, suddenly dizzy. Denise looked at her, distracted and concerned.

"I'm alright," she reassured Denise. "Just fix him up. He's bled a lot."

"Where are Kat and Steve?" Aaron asked Glenn.

"They just took them, both of them," Glenn explained, exasperated and tired. "Jumped us out of nowhere, took them and left."

"Why?" Aaron asked, his brow furrowed as he tried to make sense of it. "Who was it?"

"It was Dwight and his crew again, I don't know why, he never said, just held us all at gun point and told us they were coming with them," Glenn explained. "I tried to talk to them, tried to reason with them, but they weren't hearing it. I didn't know what to do." He said, sounding defeated.

"That's the second time they've done that," Aaron replied softly. "Rick needs to know."

Glenn nodded in response, but hesitated leaving the foot of the bed. Heath's breathing was rapid and shallow, his color pale. Denise and Ellie worked quietly and swiftly on him, bandaging him up. Tara swayed on the bed beside them, trying to control her dizziness. There was a quiet chaos in the room that had begun to soften. Glenn nodded again at Aaron, and silently indicated to the door, Aaron following him as they exited the clinic.

Ellie finished bandaging the wound on Heath's leg as Denise went to check on Tara. She got her to lie down on the bed, and examined the gash on her forehead, her hands shaking.

"Ellie, can you…?"Denise said, her voice cracking. Tara held her hand and reassured her that she was alright, but Denise's thinly veiled confidence had wavered.

"Sure," Ellie replied, nodding and making her way over to the bed, after hooking Heath up to a monitor that beeped quietly and regularly with his heart rate.

She grabbed another suture kit after washing off her hands, cleaning up as best she could, and examined the gash on Tara's head. She took a few deep breaths as she channeled her knowledge and buried, dusty skills, and got to work. She cleaned up the wound and stitched it closed, covering it with a gauze and piece of tape. Tara held still the whole time, speaking softly to Denise who was now apparently quite shaken.

"Stop it, I'm alright," she said to Denise, squeezing her hand as she sat up on the bed after Ellie finished. "Thanks Ellie," she added, smiling.

"You're welcome, I hope it's not too ugly a scar, I'm a bit rusty," she replied, smirking.

"That's alright, I hear chicks dig scars," she quipped, with a soft laugh. Denise furrowed her brow at her in response. "Lighten up, I'm okay."

Denise didn't reply, but eventually nodded in agreement.

"Is he going to be okay?" Tara asked, indicating to Heath with a nod of her head.

Neither woman responded immediately, unsure of how to answer.

"Time will tell," Ellie replied, softly, as Denise struggled to find the words. How do you predict an outcome when you have no diagnostic tools to your advantage? She thought to herself. "We just have to watch and see."

"What happened to you guys?" Denise asked, her voice shaky with concern.

"We decided to pack up camp early and head home this morning, when out of nowhere we were jumped. It's like they had been watching us all night, waiting for their moment. I'm surprised they didn't come after us while we slept," Tara explained. "They just took Kat and Steve with no explanation, held them at gun point and shoved them in a van."

"Why would they take hostages and not tell you why?" Ellie asked, trying to make sense of it as she cleaned up the ransacked clinic. Denise sat with Tara on the bed, her eyes on Heath, watching his breathing. She reached up and slowed the IV rate down a bit.

"I really don't know," Tara responded, shaking her head, baffled. She sighed and leaned into the pillows, suddenly exhausted.

"Why don't you take her upstairs?" Ellie suggested to Denise. "I'll watch Heath, and grab you if I need anything," she offered with smile, noting Denise's fretting over Tara, and Tara's sudden exhaustion. Ellie limped about the room absently, cleaning up after the chaos, putting things away, and setting supplies next to Heath's bed, in case she needed things in a hurry.

"You sure?" Denise asked, warily eyeing Heath's form.

Ellie looked at the numbers on the monitor and nodded.

"He's stable right now, go on, I got this," she said, nodding her head towards the stairs.

She watched the couple as Denise led Tara up the stairs, and smiled at the level of care and compassion Denise showed Tara. They clearly loved each other. While the displays of loving affection had made her uncomfortable a couple days earlier, she was able to appreciate it after taking in the events of the morning. It was hard to imagine such loving tenderness, as someone who had seen very little of that in her life. Couple that with the state of the world today, and she was in awe that anyone would be that openly vulnerable so easily. It made her question herself, her need to keep so boxed in and protective of herself. In just a week's time, she had seen such amazing displays of compassion and love that made her question her whole outlook on humanity. The person who had met Aaron and Daryl in the woods was slowly slipping away, thanks to this community and its promise. She smiled at herself, thinking it's about time she let some of that fade away. It was toxic, and it would eat at her if she didn't.

She looked over at Heath's unconscious form, his chest rising and falling raggedly. She reached out and grabbed his hand, gently squeezing it reassuringly. She whispered to him that he was going to be okay, that she believed it. After a few moments, his fingers gently flexed in her hand in response, causing her to smile. She went back to cleaning up and organizing the scattered clinic, eyeing him every few minutes and smiling with relief as his breathing seemed to improve every time she looked his way.

* * *

Ellie balanced precariously on a chair in front of the largest bookcase that stood behind the desk in the clinic. She had pulled all the supplies down off the shelf, and was wiping it down to restock it. Heath had been asleep for hours, his vital signs improving with each check. He woke up briefly and took some pain meds and some liquids before settling to sleep again.

Denise and Tara had not reappeared since their departure upstairs earlier in the morning. She assumed they were both sleeping, which they desperately needed. Ignoring her own body's protests at being awake for so long after a restless night, Ellie opted to keep busy by organizing the supply shelves.

When she had done her initial tour of the clinic a couple of days earlier, she had noted the disarray of the shelving units and the impractical way the supplies were organized. She pulled things off the shelves, and regrouped them so they were easier to find and grab when needed. She had supplies scattered over the desk as she worked on the upper shelf, balancing on her good leg on the wobbly chair, coaching herself not to fall. She reached as far as she could with her right arm to clean the shelf, before turning around to toss the rag on the desk. She let out a yelp of surprise when she turned around and saw Rick and Daryl staring at her, watching her work. She lost her balance as they both leaped towards her to help steady her, as she fell back and knocked her head on one of the shelves.

"Ouch!" she hissed, her hand going to the back of her head as she steadied herself. Daryl reached up and held her arm to help steady her, as Rick came around the other side of the desk. Daryl helped her down off the chair, Ellie landing clumsily on the ground and bumping into him. "Sorry," she muttered, her hand landing on his chest to brace herself as she rubbed the back of her head. "Thanks."

"No problem," he responded, smirking at her clumsiness. "What the hell were you doing?"

"Organizing," she replied simply, dropping her hand from his chest and clearing her throat, scrunching her nose as she gazed at the shelves. "This didn't make any sense at all, practicality wise," she explained, gesturing to the shelving unit behind her after Daryl let go of her arm. Her skin tingled where his hands had been, and it rattled her momentarily. She shook her head and collected her thoughts.

"Didn't you hear us come in?" Rick asked, nodding at the door, his brow furrowed as he studied her. She felt subconscious under his penetrative gaze, like he was looking far deeper into her than the average person was. It was like she was a book and he was reading every word. It was disconcerting at times and she felt very intimidated by his presence.

"Uh, no," she replied, shaking her head again. "That door is so quiet. That or I'm completely oblivious, but that's a frightening thought, so yeah, let's go with the door is too quiet," she mumbled, almost nervously, chuckling softly.

Daryl watched her with interest, smirking to himself at her demeanor. He noticed the level of nervousness she showed around Rick. She was intimidated by him, which he found amusing for some reason. There were aspects of her that reminded him so much of Rick it was almost scary. He wondered if he should mention that to her, and if that would loosen her up a little.

"How is he?" Rick asked, nodding to Heath.

"Better. He woke up a little while ago, took something for pain, had something to drink. The bleeding stopped, thank goodness. He could probably use some blood, which we don't have, so he'll need some fluids and rest. But it looks promising."

"Good," Rick replied, nodding his head. "Is Tara around? I wanted to chat with her and Heath, you think he'd be up to it?"

"Tara is upstairs, sleeping I think. Denise too. I could go up and wake them, if you like," she offered, gesturing up the stair well. "As for him," she added, nodding at Heath, "I'm sure he'd be okay with a little questioning, within reason, as long as he's awake." She said, shrugging her shoulders.

"Good, good, "he replied, nodding and edging over to Heath's bedside. Ellie smiled at Daryl, and headed up the stairs slowly, to get Tara and Denise.

Rick studied Daryl who was watching Ellie climb the stairs. His eyes narrowed and his lips drew into a knowing smile as he registered the connection between the two of them. He had never seen Daryl show that kind of interest before, and it gave him hope for his friend.

"What?" Daryl asked, when he noticed Rick watching him.

"Nothin'," Rick replied, grinning and laughing softly. "This place is wearin' on you," he commented as he pulled up a chair beside Heath's bed.

"What's that mean?" Daryl asked, furrowing his brow and crossing his arms across his chest.

"Nothin'," Rick replied again, smirking.

Daryl narrowed his eyes at Rick and leaned up against the banister of the staircase, rolling his eyes and scoffing. The girls slowly trickled down the stairs as the guys settled in. Rick woke Heath up and began questioning him about their attack, Tara sitting on the opposite bed and joining in the discussion. Denise moved over to the desk and eyed the shelving unit in varying degrees of disarray, her eyes widening.

"It's okay, I'll clean it all up, I promise. And it will make sense," Ellie explained, placing her hand on Denise's arm reassuringly. "You okay if I go get some fresh air, since you're down here?" she asked, nodding at the door.

"Oh for sure, go for it. Sorry to leave you for so long, we both fell asleep. You should have woken us," Denise said.

"I didn't want to wake you, it was fine, clearly I found something to keep busy with," she said, smirking. "I'll be back in a bit," she added, and headed towards the door. She limped out onto the porch, making her way towards the stairs and settling in on the top step. She leaned her head against the railing, and closed her eyes, taking in a few deep breaths. The air around her buzzed with the active noises of the day in town, people milling about, working on various projects. Kids playing. The distant moans of walkers reminded her of what was never too far away. The peacefulness and general normalcy lulled her into a calm as she relaxed on the stoop. She would have fallen asleep right there if Denise hadn't tapped her on the shoulder.

"Why don't you go home for a bit?" she offered.

"Oh, but I should clean up my mess in there," Ellie started, but Denise held up a hand stopping her.

"It can wait. You deserve some rest now. Thank you so much for everything you've done today. You have no idea how much I appreciated it. I needed you," she said, pulling Ellie into a tight hug as she rose off the step. It took Ellie a moment to register, before she wrapped her arms around Denise and returned the hug.

"You're welcome," Ellie replied, her voice cracking.

"I'm so glad you're here," Denise said sincerely. "Now go, get some rest. I'll get you if I need anything."


	8. Chapter 8

The late afternoon sun cascaded down on the street, heating Ellie's cheeks as she walked back to the house from the clinic. She was looking forward to grabbing a shower and a bite to eat, and relaxing for the evening. She had spent the past couple of days and evenings there with Denise, going through inventory, watching over Heath while he recovered from his injury, and reorganizing the front room of the clinic. Denise had ushered her out of the clinic this afternoon and sent her home to get some rest, seeing the general fatigue on her face. Initially reluctant to leave, Ellie conceded after some badgering from Denise, and Tara, who chimed in when it appeared Denise wasn't winning the battle.

Ellie and Denise were quickly forming a bond. Ellie felt comfortable with Denise, sensed an understanding that made her drop her guard. They worked closely together, and spent long hours quizzing each other on medical knowledge, using each other to bolster their own confidence in their knowledge. Denise admitted to Ellie that before she arrived, she had been so unsure of her knowledge and ability to provide the kind of medicine needed now, but having Ellie there to quiz her and challenge her knowledge base made her feel better about what she actually knew. Her vulnerability struck a chord with Ellie, it was almost enough to break down her own walls and open up more. She still held back, now more out of fear of scaring people if she opened up about her past, than of the actual prospect of letting people in. She had been there a week and a half, and already was so attached to everyone, she was afraid she would lose everything if she shared too much. It didn't help that the more she reflected on things, the less sleep she got at night, the more the dreams came back. Dreams that she had been very careful to keep under wraps.

Ellie walked absently down the street, enjoying the afternoon sunlight, lost in thought. Carl running up to her caught her attention, and she smiled at the site of the young teen, wearing his dad's old tattered Sheriff's hat, bandage over his missing right eye. He ducked his head when he reached her, and her smile widened.

"Hey, how's it going?" she said, squinting a bit as the sun hit her eyes.

"Oh, good. I was just coming to see you. I uh, found something for you," he said with a knowing grin. He reached behind his back and pulled a tattered book out of his belt, where he had it tucked. He handed it to her, his grin getting bigger. "Audrey, uh I mean Mrs Thorne, had it. She gave it to me to give to Enid, but I thought you would like it more."

Ellie gasped as she saw the tattered front cover of her favorite book. She carefully opened the cover, and began flipping through the pages, the words floating through the air and into her brain, like some sort of balm, soothing in their familiarity.

"I remembered you said it was your favorite," he added, pointing at the book.

"It is. Thank you!" she exclaimed, clutching it tightly. "You remembered," she said softly to herself, smiling. "You sure Enid won't want to read it?"

"Naw, it's not really her thing. She is more into comics and stuff," he said, blushing when he began talking about her.

"This is a classic. She might like it. You ever read it?" she asked, holding it out for him.

"Uh, no, no I haven't. I mostly read comics, too," he added, shaking his head.

"Why don't you read it? I think you'll really like it. It could be like a comic, there's adventure, dragons, sword fights, elves, dwarves, a treasure, and a huge battle. You might like it," she added, holding it out for him. "Mrs. Thorne didn't want you to read it?"

"Uh, she may have suggested it. But she didn't tell me about all that. Also suggested I write something about it," he said, making a face.

"Tell you what, why don't you give it a shot. I think you'll like it. And then we can talk about it after. I've read it about a hundred times, would love to hear what you think about it," she said, smiling softly. "I promise I won't make you write anything," she added with a wink.

Carl paused, taking the book out of her hand and flipping it over to read the back, his eye squinting as he looked from the cover to her face.

"You sure?" he asked.

"Definitely," she replied enthusiastically. He fell into line beside her as they continued walking along the sidewalk to Aaron's.

"Thanks," he replied, hesitantly. He tucked the book back in the back of his pants for safe keeping. They walked together companionably for a bit, before he picked up the conversation again. "Your ankle's better?"

"Yeah. Yeah, better every day. Just aches every now and then," she explained, nodding. "Nothing I can't stand though. Wish I could be running, but I have to give it some more time."

"Why do you want to run? You thinking of leaving?" he asked, a look of concern flashing across his face momentarily.

"What? No! Not at all. Just haven't been sleeping well lately, and running used to help that. Really takes my mind to a different place," she explained, her gaze softening as she dropped it to the ground in front of her.

"Oh," he replied, nodding his head.

"I really like it here," she added, after a moment of silence. "A lot."

"Good. I'm glad to hear that, you belong here," he said, smiling.

"You still believe, Carl, that there are good people out there?" she asked, looking at him skeptically.

Carl was quiet, contemplative. They walked across the street and up the walkway to the porch outside Aaron's, before they stopped. He looked up and smiled at her.

"Have to," he replied simply, tapping her on the shoulder before jogging off, leaving her standing at the bottom of the stairs in bewilderment. She watched him jog away, thinking about what he must have been through these past couple of years and how it likely affected him, and yet there he was, still optimistic. Sighing to herself, she lumbered up the stairs and into the house.

Her stomach led the way and she made her way to the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of water and an apple, shoving it in her mouth ravenously as she closed the fridge door.

"Hey!" Aaron exclaimed as he bumped into her on the way out of the kitchen. "You surfaced."

Ellie chewed quickly and swallowed, nodding her head.

"Yeah, Denise sent me home, I think she's sick of looking at me," Ellie said, jokingly.

"You look...," he started, as he took in the circles under her eyes, grimacing.

"Great. I look great," she said, smiling coyly. She laughed softly, taking another bite of her apple. "Nothing a shower and a nap won't fix," she added, swallowing her bite.

"Right. I'm making some coffee, you interested?"

"Definitely. Save me a cup," she said as she headed to her room to gather her stuff to take a shower. She finished off her apple, tossing the core in the compost pail on her way up the stairs.

She came back down the stairs, the smell of fresh coffee hitting her nostrils like an alarm clock, refreshing her and energizing her. She dropped her stuff in her room, and wandered back into the kitchen, twirling her braided wet hair and letting it fall over her shoulder as Aaron handed her a cup of hot coffee, black, with a spoon of sugar. She savored the smell as it wafted from the cup. Both hands wrapped around it, absorbing the warmth. Taking a large gulp of the hot liquid, she swallowed slowly, a smile crossing her lips. The familiar flavor and smell was comforting to her after a long couple of days.

"So how's Heath doing?" Aaron asked, leaning against the counter as he sipped his cup.

"Better. He should be able to go home tomorrow," she said, smiling as she hugged her cup close to her and leaned against the opposite counter.

"Oh thank goodness. You guys did a great job."

"We did what we could. Thankfully it was enough," she said, furrowing her brow as she stared into her cup. "I worry about when it won't be," she added, taking a sip.

"I know. There is only so much you can do with what you have," Aaron added, frowning.

A loud crash from the garage startled Ellie as she sipped on her coffee, some of it sloshing out of the cup onto her hand. Aaron winced, and shook his head, barely phased. She looked at Aaron questionably as she wiped the coffee off her hand, and he just shrugged in response.

"What was that?" she asked, her attention on the door to the garage, her brow furrowed.

Aaron looked at her warily, one corner of his mouth drawn in. He slowly sipped from his cup of coffee before responding.

"Daryl. He's been home about 20 minutes or so. From the sounds of it, things didn't go well," he explained, sipping absently as another loud bang echoed through the door into the kitchen.

Ellie's brows deepened, her concern evident. Daryl, Rick, and Abraham had set out two days ago to track Dwight and his group, to get Kat and Steve back, and to get information. She had hoped for success, at the very least for them to find Kat and Steve, but it appeared they weren't able to even do that. She drew her lips in a tight line, and sighed, nodding in understanding.

She wandered over to the coffee pot, and poured a cup of coffee into a third cup. Gathering it with her own, she headed to the garage.

"Oh, I uh, would maybe, uh, just give him some space," Aaron advised, grimacing slightly.

"Why?" she asked, arching an eyebrow.

"I think he just likes to be alone, when he's frustrated. Usually when he is like this, Eric and I just let him be. He'll come in eventually. Usually works on his bike for a while."

"Oh," she replied, nodding. Ignoring his warning, she grabbed both mugs and headed for the garage, opening it and entering the drafty cold space. The garage door was open, Daryl's bike parked in the middle. Random parts scattered a couple of work benches. There was a tarp in the corner, covering larger parts of an older bike that had been picked for scraps. Tools scattered about, with no homes. She glanced around at the mess, and saw Daryl, pacing by the open garage door, cigarette dangling from his lips, a worn and heavy scowl across his face.

She smiled at him when his eyes caught hers, and held up the cup of coffee as a gesture of goodwill. He frowned and looked away from her, running his hand through his scruffy hair. He took a long drag of his cigarette, blowing the smoke away from him as he paced in the opening of the garage door. Ellie moved over to one of the benches, placing the cups down, and turned around, boosting herself up to sit on the counter. She grabbed her cup and sipped casually, watching him carefully.

Silently he made his way towards the work bench, picking up the cup, and snuffing out the stub of his cigarette in the ashtray on the corner. He avoided her gaze as he took a long slow sip of the black coffee, swallowing slowly, before replacing the cup on the counter. He nodded at her as a thank you before resuming his pacing.

Ellie sat there silently, drinking her coffee and watching him pace. Eventually his pacing slowed, his breathing calmed, and he focused his attention on his bike. Crouched down, he began tinkering with the motor, grabbing a couple of tools off the bench and pulling the rag out of his back pocket. She watched him work, drawn by his attention and focus. She absently placed her cup on the bench beside her, and her fingers found their way to the braid that fell over her shoulder. Now barely damp, she undid the tie and combed her fingers through the long dark brown tresses, before she loosely redid the braid.

Watching Daryl work, in the now quiet garage, was soothing and comfortable. She couldn't explain where the feeling came from, but she felt quite at home, like she was where she was supposed to be. The feeling washed over her, settling into her skin, creating a flush of warmth. It caused a sudden sensation of needing to move, her skin tingling, her limbs suddenly restless. It was not a feeling she was accustomed to, and as good as it felt, it made her nervous and scared. She cleared her throat and jumped off the workbench, and began wandering around the garage absently.

Daryl lifted his gaze off his bike and watched her wander for a moment. His lips drew into a smirk, and he shook his head, remembering what Rick had said to him a couple of days ago.

"Was that a smile?" She asked, noticing the small gesture, stopping on the other side of his bike, her hand on the seat.

Daryl huffed in response, trying to hold on to the anger and frustration that had him pacing a little while earlier. It was difficult though, as her presence subdued his energy, containing the fire inside him to a smolder.

"I'll take it," she added, smirking.

"Whatever," he replied, shrugging his shoulders. He stood and stretched, wandering over to the work bench to take a last long sip of his now luke-warm coffee. "Thanks for the coffee."

"No problem," she said, smiling softly. "Heath's gonna be okay," she added, after a moment.

"That's good."

"Yeah. Gonna send him home tomorrow, no signs of infection, bleeding's stopped, and the stitches are holding. He'll be out of commission for a while though. Someone else will have to take his spot on runs."

Daryl nodded as she talked, pulling a cigarette from his pocket and tucked it between his lips, lighting it. He looked at her for a moment, studying her as she continued to fidget. She settled beside him, leaning against the work bench, cracking her fingers before crossing her arms across her torso. He worked on his cigarette, his gaze dropping to the floor, and then travelling out the garage door, absently.

"You okay?" Ellie asked, as she brought a finger up to her mouth to chew on the nail absently.

Daryl nodded silently, avoiding her concerned gaze.

"Frustrated?"

"Uh huh," Daryl answered, his voice deep and gravely.

"You tried," she said softly, tapping his arm lightly with her elbow. She smiled softly at him as he nodded. "S'more than most people would do. Don't beat yourself up over it," she added, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear before she turned around and collected their empty coffee cups.

"Don't be so hard on yourself," she added, her head tilted slightly. She offered him one more smile before heading for the door to the kitchen. Daryl watched her walk away, his head hung as he rubbed his chin on his shoulder subconsciously. He shook his head as she closed the door behind herself, shaking the foggy, distracted thoughts out of his head. He turned his attention back towards his bike, grabbing a wrench and heading back over to it, diving into the welcome distraction.


	9. Chapter 9

Alexandria was quiet when Daryl got home. He had been out hunting most of the day, his tracking stalled by the presence of a small herd of walkers he had to wait out to pass him, destroying the game trail he had been following. Rick met him at the gate when he returned, touching base about what had happened while he was gone. Rick looked grim as he described the scene of events, a breach in the south east 4th panel, causing a couple of walkers to wander through the south garden. He wasn't sure why the wall had failed in that section, but he had Tobin and a couple others looking into it, reinforcing the steel and wood, trying to determine if it had been tampered with.

Rick shook his head as he described how Audrey, the town's teacher and oldest resident had been working in the garden with some of the kids at the time, teaching them about plants. She was caught off guard when the walker approached her. She shooed the children away back to their houses, as she tried to distract the walker, but she was unable to take it down. It got her on the forearm, not fatally wounding her. When she was brought to the clinic though, she had a massive heart attack and died. Ellie snapped, frantically trying anything she could think of to help the woman, with no results. Her husband Frank told the girls to stop, put his hand on his wife's body, leaned in and kissed her for the last time, before exiting the clinic, leaving the women alone with his wife's corpse. Ellie was so visibly shaken that Denise had to take her knife to the old woman, as Ellie was incapable. Hearing the story made Daryl wince uncomfortably, his brow furrowing in concern. Rick explained how she had left the clinic in a daze, and Denise had told him what had happened, and when he went to talk to her she just walked right past him. A heavy weight formed in Daryl's gut, a strong pull to seek her out and make sure she was okay, and he nodded at Rick, before taking off to the house.

After the few weeks she had been in Alexandria, Daryl had found himself drawn inexplicably to the woman, seeking her out often after runs or a hard day's work just to chat for a few minutes. Something about her was comforting, he felt at ease with her in a way he never had before. Sharing accommodations at Aaron and Eric's house meant even more opportunity to see and speak with her, and as he got to know her, he couldn't shake the attraction that was brewing. It was not just physical, of course. He had never been a slave to primal urges, couldn't be bothered most of the time. He wondered sometimes in his youth if he was broken or wrong, but those feelings faded as he found diversions to justify his lack of interest in the opposite sex. That wasn't to say he never indulged. Merle had given him more than one opportunity to take pleasure in random women.

It wasn't until Beth that he opened himself up to the idea that he could connect with someone on a deeper level, and know the benefits of that. Beth had opened a door for him, which despite the heartache of losing her, had remained ajar, and he felt it was a fitting tribute to the young blonde beauty that he keep a part of him open to possibilities. She would have been proud of his progress. He saw similarities in Ellie, though she was not Beth in any way, she had a deeper, darker past than he could even imagine, she was not nearly as optimistic as Beth, and she was way more skeptical. Still there was something about her that he respected, something that drew him in. A mystery that he longed to solve. He wondered if he solved the mystery if he would lose interest, but didn't actually think that was possible. He was beginning to think that there was more than one mystery laying deep within her soul.

He walked into the house, the living room and kitchen dimly lit. He listened carefully for the noises in the house and found it quiet. He shed his jacket and vest, hanging them on the stand beside the door and kicked off his boots. He could feel eyes on him watching his actions, and turned to scan the dim living room, his eyes adjusting to the light. It was there that he found her, curled into the corner of the couch, her knees drawn up to her chest, gripping a glass of amber liquid. He saw the bottle on the table, half empty, and cocked an eyebrow, curious. She was watching him as he nodded his head at her. Her steely grey eyes never left his face as he made his way over to the couch, dropping down heavily across from her. He watched her closely as she took a sip of the liquid in the glass, savoring the burn as it traveled down her throat.

"You okay?" he asked, leaning his elbow on the arm of the couch, a finger making its way into his mouth so he could chew on a fingernail. His gaze was penetrative as he studied her, causing her to squirm under his scrutiny. She nodded her head slowly, turning slightly to rub her chin on her shoulder. Her hair hung in a long loose braid over her shoulder, a sign she had recently showered, dark brown tendrils framing her face where they escaped from the braid. The contrast made her pale skin stand out more especially in the dimly lit room. She wore a simple white tee shirt, and black sweats, slung low on her hips. He could see her toes peeking out from the puddled hems of her pant legs.

"I heard what happened today," he said, clearing his throat as he absently rubbed his chin. "Shitty deal."

Ellie scoffed, then furrowed her brow as she stretched her neck from side to side slowly. His eyes followed the lines of her neck, graceful and long lean muscles. She gripped the glass tightly, hesitating before taking another small sip of the amber liquid. She stared into the glass, studying its contents, as tears welled up in her eyes. She sniffed softly before rubbing her chin on her shoulder again. She was trying very hard to reign her emotions in, it was apparent.

"You wanna talk about it?" he asked, his voice deep and gravely.

"I'll be okay," she said softly, her voice flat.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Just tryin to process it. It's unfair, she didn't deserve that. Such a strong lady, made it this far through all this ugliness and that's how she goes down. Felt very helpless."

Daryl was quiet for a bit as he studied her, assessing her before speaking.

"I'm sure you did everything you could," he said, his voice deep and husky.

"Wasn't enough though, in the end," she said, her mouth drawn in. She pulled her bottom lip into her mouth and chewed on it at the corner. He watched her, mesmerized by the movement, unaware of how deeply it captivated his attention. He eventually pulled his gaze away, slightly jarred at the intensity of his interest in her lower lip. She brought the glass up to her mouth again, taking another sip.

"It was enough. You gave her something for pain, her husband was by her side. Nowadays that's a blessing and a rarity," he said, trying to offer her some comfort. She nodded, staring vacantly, sighing heavily. When she didn't respond, he reached over and snatched the glass of whiskey out of her hand, downing the remnants and placing it on the table. "Ain't gonna find no comfort in that," he said simply, relishing the after burn of the familiar liquid.

"You're right," she said, sighing. She uncurled her legs, pushed herself up off the couch, grabbed the bottle and headed for the kitchen, placing it down on the counter.

"Where did you get it from?" he asked, following her.

"Frank. He said he could see something in my eyes, thought I could use it. Man's wife of sixty years just died and he was concerned about me," she commented, scoffing at herself. Unable to stop the tears from flowing, she swiped them away, suddenly flustered. "He reminds me of my gramps. Always worried about others, always worried about me," she whispered, her voice shaking.

Daryl, unaccustomed and uncomfortable with watching her shed such emotions, closed the gap between them, and grabbed her wrist as she wiped away tears. His thumb carefully grazed the inside of her wrist, and he could feel her rapid pulse beating beneath her soft pale skin. Pressed up against her, he breathed in deeply, smelling the faint smell of coconut, and soap. Her breath hitched momentarily as she adjusted to his closeness, her back firmly pressed against the counter, no escape from his presence available to her. His scent invaded her senses, the smell of musk, dirt, forest, and man. It was intoxicating. He grabbed her other hand, and squeezed her fingers reassuringly, bringing her back to the present. She furrowed her brow, and ducked her head, placing her forehead on his shoulder, collecting herself.

Unsure with what to do, he hesitantly brought his hand up her arm, stroking her shoulder soothingly, his thumb making small gentle circles on her warm soft skin while she collected herself. She kept her head ducked for a few minutes, relishing in the closeness he was offering her, feeling comforted by his attempts to soothe her, breathing in the scent of him. Eventually she brought her head up from his shoulder, and looked him in the eye. His concern for her was evident in his gaze, his brow furrowed, his eyes piercing in their blueness. She lost herself in that gaze momentarily, before turning her gaze to his lips. Before she could think too much into it, she leaned up on her toes and, placing her hand on the back of his neck, brought his lips towards hers, kissing him deeply.

It took a moment for it to register to Daryl what was happening, but once her actions sunk in, he began returning the kiss with vigor. Weeks of unspoken heat and tension between them cascaded into action. His hand left her shoulder and traveled down to her waist, pulling her tightly towards him, her body molded to his. She arched her back in response, pressing into him firmly, as her lips opened slightly, and letting out a raspy breath. He took advantage of the moment, diving on her mouth, his tongue delving in to the welcoming warmth. He could taste the whiskey on her, feel the heat of the flush of her cheeks and savored the sensory impact as his hands caressed her waist, moving of their own accord. Gripping her firmly he lifted her up and sat her on the counter. Her legs opened to allow him to lean in close as he worked at her lips, settling her warm thighs on his hips. She leaned into him, her breasts pressing against his chest as he hungrily tasted her. His hands moved from her hips up her rib cage, settling just below her breasts. He moved his lips away from hers, marking a trail of hot kisses along her chin and down to her neck. Her breathe quickened and she tilted her head back to give him access to her warm soft skin, hitting her head on the cupboard behind her, jarring her back to reality. He drew his lips off of her and looked at her with concern, his eyes dark with lust, pupils dilated. His breathing was just as erratic as hers. She giggled softly, and brought her hand up to his face, caressing his cheek gently, feeling the stubble scratch her palm. He leaned into her touch and closed his eyes, trying to collect himself.

Before he could talk himself back to reality and rationalize the situation, Ellie was grabbing his hand, and hopping of the counter. She pulled him with her down the hall to her room, opening the door and leading him inside. She closed the door behind them, and leaned against it, biting her bottom lip, and looked up at him from under her dark lashes. Her chest heaved as she took in a nervous breath, and his eyes on her stoked the fire that was building in her gut. She was unsure how to proceed, but could not shake the feeling that this felt right.

He grabbed her hand, squeezing reassuringly, and pulled her towards him. She crashed against his body, her arms wrapping around his neck as his lips found hers again, crashing hard into each other as they hungrily attacked each other. Their tongues danced in unison as her hands snaked up his neck and through his hair, her nails lightly scraping his scalp. His hands on her back traveled along her spine and down towards the soft curve of her ass, his hand landing firmly and squeezing, pulling her close enough she could feel him between them. They made their way towards the bed and he gently laid her down, tearing his lips away from hers to lay a new trail of kisses along her chin. She gasped when he found her earlobe and when he gently grazed his teeth on the skin behind her ear she made a noise that made his eyes darken and he grinned with satisfaction as he continued to lay a trail of soft bites and gentle kisses down her neck.

Her hands wandered, caressing his firm biceps, running across his shoulders and down his chest. She began unbuttoning his shirt and he quickly shed it, tossing it to the floor. She ran her hands over the hard muscles of his naked chest, feeling the quickening of his pulse as she grazed her fingers along the base of his neck, trailing the dips of his clavicles, marking a trail with her searing touch. His head dipped lower as he made his way to the valley between her breasts, his hands cupping her and squeezing, his thumb grazing over one of her nipples that was visible through her shirt and bra. She sucked in a breath, relishing his touch and how good it made her feel. Her hands threaded through his hair, pressing him into her chest as he led a trail with his tongue over the top of her breast, and down to her nipple, wetting the fabric that covered her. He moved his hands down her torso and lifted her top up her body and over her head, exposing her bare skin and a white lace bra, her nipples jutting out firmly waiting for attention. He dove on one, lapping it with his tongue as she gasped.

His hands reached behind her and unhooked her bra, shedding it and adding it to the growing pile of clothes on the floor. He looked at her naked breasts hungrily, like he was heading for a buffet after a hunger strike. His hands cupped her breasts, his thumbs grazing her erect nipples gently at first, then harder as she moaned and writhed in response. When he replaced his thumbs with his lips, she nearly bucked off the bed as his tongue and lips worked magic on her naked skin. She writhed underneath him as he worked on one breast and then the other, before his lips began to trail further down, kissing her abdomen as his hands made their way down her soft skin towards the waistband of her pants.

It took a minute to jar her back to reality when he stopped what he was doing. He had taken her completely out of herself, and when her mind caught up to what was going on and registered why he had stopped, she was startled by her lack of awareness and concern. When she looked at him he was staring at her abdomen, his hands gently tracing each scar, his brow furrowed in concern, his eyes dark now, not just with lust, but something more. A searing, penetrative heat that should have scared her or at the least startled her, but didn't.

She had never shown anyone her scars, and that this was just registering now was startling to her. It showed the level of trust she had in this man that she was not even remotely concerned about what he might think. But looking at his face as he counted each pink scar made her second guess that feeling momentarily. She suddenly felt exposed, flayed open like her skin had been peeled back and he was studying her insides. She froze, her breath catching in her throat as he brought his gaze up to meet her eyes. She dropped her head back on the bed, and brought her hands up to cover her face, trembling fingers resting on her forehead. She could feel Daryl's hand gently stroke the skin on her abdomen before he reached up and removed her hands from her face.

Daryl stared at her, studying her face as dozens of questions flashed through his mind. He looked for clues in her eyes as to where to even begin, but all he could see was that she was suddenly utterly and completely rattled, when before she had seemed so sure of herself. Her sudden shift in demeanor put the brakes on the charging steam train that this encounter had begun as, and it was now full-blown stopped. He was alarmed by the look of fear in her eyes that flashed momentarily, concerned that he had caused it.

He rolled off her, and lay beside her on the bed, catching his breath. He could hear her ragged breathing beside him as they both stared at the ceiling. Neither of them moved for a few moments, and he was just contemplating his next move when she reached for him, grabbing his hand and threading her fingers with his, squeezing tightly. Her fingers and her hand trembled inside his. He leaned over her, and she hesitantly made eye contact with him, her confidence all but gone. He brushed a couple of loose tendrils away from her face, his touch gentle as a feather, and he gently leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips. Sitting up, he reached over and grabbed her shirt, handing it back to her so she could cover up.

Ellie absently pulled her top on over her head, as she shimmied to the end of the bed. She sat close to Daryl, their thighs touching as the silence crept over them. She shakily brought a hand up to her hair and collected her braid, undoing the elastic and running her fingers through her long dark locks. Daryl cleared his throat, and pushed himself off the bed, the sudden urge to move taking over. He grabbed his shirt, swiftly throwing it back on and buttoning it up. His skin itched and tremored with something he could not quite place, but it drove him into a fit of restlessness he could not quell. He began pacing in the small room, chewing on a fingernail.

Ellie felt suddenly empty, when he rose from the bed. The distance he put between them felt like miles, the bedroom both too big and too small all at once. Her throat went dry as she tried to formulate words to reason or to explain or to just close the distance, but came up short.

"I'm sorry," he muttered, avoiding her eyes, bringing his hands up and rubbing his head. "I… what…shit…," he struggled to find words to express what was tumbling through his brain.

"It's not your fault," she replied softly. "Please don't apologize."

"What happened?" he asked, walking towards her, reaching for her face, gently stroking her cheek and guiding her chin up so she was forced to look at him. Tears welled in her eyes as she shook her head.

"I can't… it's… complicated," she replied, wincing at her shit explanation. He dropped his hand from her chin, placing both hands on his hips as he took a deep breath in. He leaned back, studying her, before slowly nodding in understanding. "I just…"

"s'okay," he said, holding a hand up to stop her explanation. Unsure of how to proceed, and feeling more jittery and uncomfortable by the second, he made the decision to remove himself from the situation. "I should go."

Ellie furrowed her brow and ducked her head, not sure how to respond.

"I wish you wouldn't," she said softly, as she wiped at a tear that escaped from her eyes. "Stay? Please?"

"Ell, I…," he started, pausing as the impact of her pleas hit him. She needed comfort, but he wasn't sure how to provide that, the heat from earlier diminished to a flicker of an ember in his gut. He didn't think he was capable of offering comfort to anyone, didn't think he had that set of skills, but he knew that for her, he would try. She pushed herself up off the bed, and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his torso and pulling him tightly to her, placing her head on his shoulder as she fought to control her emotions. He hesitated momentarily before his arms moved as if of their own accord, wrapping around her and squeezing her firmly against him, resting his chin on her head.

"I'm not good at this," he said, in reference to all of it. She nodded slowly, her head moving ever so slightly against his shoulder.

"Yes you are," she whispered in response.

He didn't know how long they stayed like that, or at what point they ended up back in the bed, her curled up next to him, her head on his chest, or how long they slept like that. All he knew was that when he woke the next morning, as the sun poked through the curtains on her window, his need to escape bubbled to the surface again. It started as subtle tremors underneath his skin, and eventually he couldn't fight the need to move, to get away, to think. It all suddenly became overwhelming and too much. He cared deeply for her, he knew it. Seeing those marks on her skin made him feel things he never thought he would feel for another person, the urge to save her from something that had clearly happened a long time ago was too strong to fight. He didn't even know if she still needed saving, but he could tell that whatever it was, it still affected her strongly.

Unable to lay still any longer, he gently eased out from under her, waiting until she rolled over and resettled into the bed before getting up and throwing on his shirt. He looked at her sleeping form, leaning over her and brushing a stray strand of hair away, gently caressing her face. The desire to treat her like she was fragile, like porcelain, was strong, even though he knew how strong and capable she was. He stared at her features, memorizing them before slinking quietly out of the room and shutting the door. When Ellie woke later, alone in her bed, she would not know when he left, or why, but could feel in her heart that it would be a while before she saw him again. The thought both stung her deeply, and made perfect sense. She had pushed him beyond his comfort level last night, and had a pang of regret that it may have been more selfish than she intended.


	10. Chapter 10

_Thank you all so much for your reviews! I'm so happy that you are enjoying reading this story as much as I am writing it! Enjoy this update, another coming shortly, Cheers! xoxo Byn_

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"Eugene, I just don't understand how you could have done this to yourself?" Ellie commented as she crouched in front of Eugene who was sitting on one of the beds, examining his knee and calf, which were covered in brambles, dirt and several gashes ranging in depth.

"I assure you madam, it was not my intention to rumble with a bramble bush on this day. I got a bit spirited in my assertion of my abilities and have succumbed to the harsh light of reality on that assumption," Eugene spurted off, wincing as Ellie poked at his knee, assessing the best way to attack the mangled wounds. Abraham paced the room behind her, shaking his head.

"You got yourself a screw loose Eugene. I swear, I don't think you'll ever learn," He mumbled, grumpily.

"I am quite capable of handling myself, thank you very much. We have hammered this point a time too many, I will not engage in this debate again with you," Eugene bantered back. Ellie listened to them bicker as she gathered supplies, and a bowl of fresh water and some clean towels. She set up beside Eugene, and then pulled a stool over so she could sit more comfortably and gestured him to put his leg up on the bed.

She quietly worked at pulling out brambles one by one and dropping them in a bowl, while the men bickered good-naturedly back and forth. She did not bother to interrupt them, noting that it kept Eugene distracted from her task, and he was staying a lot more still than the last time she had worked on him. He had been her most frequent visitor since she started working at the clinic, his tally of sutures ever growing. She was beginning to wonder if he was doing this on purpose, Tara had basically said as much the last time he was in. She said she had never seen him so chatty with anyone, and the way he looked at her had her guessing he was smitten. Ellie shrugged it off, looking at Tara skeptically. She reflected on that conversation as she sat in front of him pulling brambles and small rocks out of his knee and shook her head. She worked swiftly, pulling out the last stubborn bramble a little more roughly, causing Eugene to wince.

"Sorry," She supplied, grimacing slightly at him as she looked up at him.

"That's okay. Even a dog knows to stay clear of a drop off that leads directly to a bramble bush, I deserve to suffer for my stupidity."

"You're not stupid Eugene, just clumsy," Abraham rolled his eyes at this comment, as Ellie tried to reassure him.

"Clumsy. Right. You'd think he had a hundred thumbs." He muttered, shaking his head.

"Do you need to rag on him this hard?" she threw out there, his pacing and jabs irritating her. She instantly regretted her comment, and mentally chastised herself for her lack of filter. She gasped and threw her hands up to her mouth in embarrassment.

"Sorry, I'm tired, didn't mean to be snarky," She quickly apologized. Abraham looked at her, taken aback by her quick barb, before nodding an acceptance of her apology. He paused his pacing, and watched her closely, studying her movements as she brushed back a few loose strands of hair that had come out of her braid, while she set up her dressing field. He noticed her hands shook slightly in their movements, a subtle tremor that gave away her fatigue and stress.

"No, you're right, I don't. I can take a hint. Got some things to check on anyways. I'll find you later Eugene. Ellie," He said, nodding his head at her curtly. She felt bad she made him uncomfortable but she couldn't stand him riding Eugene's chops like that and him not standing up for himself. He turned and headed for the door, opening it sharply and making to walk out when Daryl lumbered through it stiffly.

"Woah, what happened to you Evil Kinevil? Heavy make-out session with some pavement?" Abraham quipped, taking in Daryl's disheveled, battered appearance. Ellie turned at the comment, looking over her shoulder to see what the commotion was, her eyes widening at Daryl's appearance.

"Are you okay?" Ellie asked, a concerned look enveloping her features, her brows furrowed deeply.

"Denise here?" he muttered, stiffly dropping his jacket on the nearest stretcher. His hair was a disheveled mess, his cheeks were flushed and dirty, and his breathing was ragged. Blood dripped from his shoulder, small trickles travelling down his arm to his fingers.

"Just me," Ellie replied, avoiding eye contact and returning her gaze to her work, letting out a heavy breath. She finished cleaning off Eugene's leg and grabbed the packages of butterfly tape, opening them abruptly.

"You're busy, I can come back," He said gruffly, clearing his throat.

"Stay, I'm almost done," She said, not looking at him as she worked.

"S'okay. I don't mind," He said, reaching for his jacket and sucking in a pained breath at the movement.

"Would you just… don't leave," she said, sighing loudly, exasperated. Eugene's eyes widened as he noticed her roll her eyes deftly in frustration. Abraham looked back and forth between them trying to decipher the interaction with no luck. He shook his head, a confused look on his face, as he exited the clinic, shutting the door behind him.

"I'll come back in a bit."

"Seriously, if you don't sit your ass down, I will find a way to sit it down for you," She said sharply, barely able to hide her irritation. _What was wrong with her?_ She wondered to herself. Irritability was not normal for her, and she hated herself for her biting tone, because she didn't mean it. Eugene stared at her, alarmed. Her hand went up to her mouth again in shock, as tears welled in her eyes. She blinked quickly, dismissing them away.

"I'm sorry," she muttered softly. Daryl stared at her dumbfounded for a moment before easing himself onto a stretcher, watching her carefully with a furrowed brow and a dark gaze.

Ellie tried to compose herself and returned to the task in front of her to help her gain her composure. She gently applied some gauze to Eugene's bigger cuts and wrapped his leg with kling gauze.

"Okay Eugene, try and stay out of anymore bushes, will you?" she quipped, as she taped the gauze in place.

"I cannot make any promises, Ellie, but I will do my best to maintain the patient end of this relationship to the best of my ability and follow your instructions thusly."

"Eugene, just be more careful," she said, shaking her head, exasperated.

"Thank you Ellie, I appreciate your swift work and nimble fingers," he replied, smiling at her. He grinned and nodded at Daryl as well, but received a dark brooding gaze in return, causing his smile to falter. He eased himself off the bed, and limped his way out the door, leaving the two of them in an awkward silence. Ellie bent over the bed, cleaning it off and picking up her garbage and bringing the bowl of now dirty water and dirty cloth to the sink.

"What happened?" she asked softly as she moved about the room, cleaning up and washing her hands as Daryl moved from the stretcher to the bed that Eugene had just vacated.

"Took a corner fast and bit it, shredded my jacket, and my arm," he said, lifting his left arm to indicate. His shirt was tattered and his arm had been bleeding. "Where's Denise?"

"She's out, with Tara and Rosita. Weapons training," she said simply. "You rather have a doctor?" she asked, looking at him as she paused while gathering some supplies, her arms open in challenge. He shook his head in response, his eyes widening slightly, and she ducked her head and resumed her collecting.

She finished gathering what she needed and headed over to the bed, setting up what she needed. The energy between them was stormy. She hadn't been this close to him in days, and suddenly felt overwhelmed with warring emotions. Like the other night, the room suddenly felt too big and too small all at once, and her breathing caught in her throat. She cleared her throat as she reached for his arm. She could feel his skin tremor underneath her touch momentarily, as she moved the shredded remains of his shirt aside to check out the road rash.

Grabbing scissors she cut away the remnants of the sleeve to give her access to his arm. He remained silent beside her as she worked. She paused as she was cutting underneath his arm, alarmed by the amount of blood she saw. It was clearly from more than just the road rash on his bicep. Daryl sucked in a breath as she lifted his arm up.

"What…?" she asked, as she maneuvered his vest off his left shoulder carefully. "Daryl, what…?" she struggled to make sense of the gash along his rib cage.

"S'nothing," he muttered, wincing. Ellie cut his shirt open around the wound, and grabbed the clean towel, pressing it firmly to the wound that was still oozing blood.

"What the fuck happened? This is not just bailing off your bike."

"Ran into some trouble. It's all good. I'm fine."

Ellie drew her gaze from the wound to Daryl's face, looking at him skeptically. Daryl finally met her gaze, his eyes dark and hooded. Her silent question went unanswered, and she sighed, and dropped her gaze, defeated. She silently gestured for him to hold the towel so she could go grab a suture kit and some more clean linen to cleanse the wounds.

"Lay on your side," She said softly, gesturing to the bed. He complied without argument, silently reclining on the bed, wincing as he maneuvered his arm out of the way. Ellie set up her suture kit, and cleansed the wound, a clean slice across his rib cage. It didn't look too deep, on inspection, and his breathing wasn't seriously compromised. She finished cleaning it up and threaded the needle, carefully, and took a deep breath before lining up the wound edges delicately and drawing her first stitch. Daryl was quiet as she worked, wincing occasionally but holding still for her.

"We gonna talk about the other night?" she asked, as she gently drew the thread through his skin. He glanced at her, his eyes sparking briefly before a shadow overtook their brightness. "We should."

His silent gaze was the only response he gave her. She could see his jaw tick as he chewed on the inside of his lip but he did not acknowledge her request. She met his eyes, holding his gaze momentarily before turning her attention back to her stitches.

"I just… I don't want you to think I was using you or anything," She said as she worked, her eyes on the gash in his skin, her cheeks flushing with color. Awkward conversations were painful, but she felt she needed to tell him how she was feeling.

"I wasn't, I mean I didn't… ugh…," she grunted, furrowing her brow as she searched for the words to describe her intentions. "I needed to feel something good, for once in my life, you know?"

He watched her struggle and stumble over her words, refraining from a response. His gaze traveled over her face, and down her body, as he had a clear view while she worked of all the things he had his hands on days earlier. _Why had they stopped?_ He couldn't for the life of him understand why he pulled away from what she offered freely. It took an immeasurable amount of restraint to remove his hands from her lithe body, his lips from her soft neck. But seeing those scars, knowing that someone had done that to her, mutilated her beautiful soft skin, damaged her like that, had made his blood boil. It had been very rare for him to feel such a deep seeded need for revenge, and he didn't even know the circumstances. All he knew was that someone had carved her up like a Christmas ham and no one did that accidentally. His eyes traveled up her body to her face and he studied her features. She blushed harder at his gaze, something that brought him a modicum of satisfaction. The fact that just his gaze could cause her cheeks to heat was a bit of a power trip.

"You're a good guy," She said, breaking his trance. He scoffed and shook his head in response. "No. You are. You can deny it all you want but your actions speak louder than anything, and you can't fight your instinct to do good things. Thank you," She said, as she tied off another stitch. "I haven't had many good things in my life, very few actually, but you're one of them. Even if it's just a moment, or two. I hope I haven't ruined our friendship," She said sheepishly, ducking her head as she tied off her last stitch and cut the thread.

She reached for some sterile gauze and taped it in place over the sutures. She sat back as she placed her tools on the tray beside her and when she turned back, Daryl was staring at her, studying her face again, as he deftly reached up and cupped her cheek.

"What happened to you?" he asked softly. Ellie closed her eyes, relishing his tenderness before he drew his hand back. Tears welled in her eyes and she struggled to find her composure before taking a deep breath in. He sat back up on the edge of the bed and she grabbed a wet cloth and started dabbing at the road rash on his arm.

"It's not important," she said softly, shaking her head.

"Like hell it isn't," he responded, his hand snaking to her waist, drawing up her shirt. He gently traced one of the pink scars that dotted her abdomen. She ignored his touch as best as she could, focusing on cleaning the muck off his arm. His touch was doing its best to be distracting, causing her skin to heat and tingle. Ellie sighed as she fought to focus on her task, as he stroked her soft skin. Eventually, what seemed like an eternity, he drew his hand back, clenching and releasing his fingers. After a lengthy silence, Ellie swallowed hard and opened her mouth.

"I was 23. New to nursing, naïve and bright eyed and eager to work in the ER," she started as she grabbed tweezers to pull the rocks out of the ground up flesh of his bicep. "I had been there maybe all of a month when this guy came in, gang fight I think, he was stabbed. I was his primary. Cops were with him for a while, but then they let him go. He was discharged after about 10 hours, most of my shift, and I thought that was the end of it. Didn't expect to be seeing him again, so didn't think much of any of it. He was like every other drunk asshole that came through the doors on a Saturday night. Handsy, flirting, smartass comments; I just ignored him and did my job," she explained, rambling.

"He came back in the next night, can't remember what for, but he asked for me by name. Why he remembered my name or wanted me as his nurse I don't know. I wasn't particularly nice to him the previous shift. I was a cocky young nurse, who knew what was good for others, and judgy about some things, thanks to my mom. Looking back the ER was probably not the best place for me to start my career anyways. Wish I would have thought that through more," she reflected, grimacing to herself and shaking her head.

"Anyways, this guy wouldn't leave me be, I had to ask one of my coworkers to take over, I just got this vibe, you know? Wasn't good. Didn't think much else of it, went off shift for 5 days, enjoyed my days off. When I came back on days, there he was, back in again. Asking for me again, hitting on me, asking me out. It made me so uncomfortable. I told him I couldn't look after him, tried to be polite about it, he seemed to take it. He didn't stay long that shift, left easily, too easily. I should have known better." She said, shaking her head as she reached for some ointment and gently dabbed it on Daryl's wound. "He followed me home that night," she whispered, as she covered the wound in the thick ointment before laying gauze over the top. She sighed, and wiped her hands off as she sat up straight.

Daryl watched her as she moved stiffly, grabbing a roll of gauze to secure the bandage around his bicep. Her clinical, detached recital of the events was concerning to him. He could tell she was struggling to share even as much as she had. She silently wound the gauze around his arm, her trembling fingers grazing his warm skin with practiced speed. She taped the end down and her fingers lingered over the seam for a moment. Daryl grabbed her wrist gently, his thumb gently stroking the inside of her wrist, drawing her out of whatever memory she had lost herself in as she went silent. She cleared her throat awkwardly and her grey eyes met his steely blue gaze momentarily before looking away.

"I'm sorry," he offered, not knowing what else to say but wanting to break the silence.

"Nothing to be sorry for. Not even avoiding me," She said with knowing smirk. "I know I pushed things, I'm not angry you avoided me for it. I deserved it."

"No you didn't," he said, his gravelly voice soothing her.

"Forget it," she replied, brushing him off, pushing herself up off the bed and collecting her supplies. She brought the bowl of water over to the sink to dump, and placed it down on the counter with a sigh. "Are we good?"

Daryl nodded subtly as he slowly pushed himself off the bed, moving stiffly.

"Good," she said, smiling. "You need anything for pain?" she asked, eyeing him up cautiously.

"Nah. I'll survive."

Ellie nodded as she worked to clean up her supplies, losing herself in thought. She didn't hear him as he approached her by the sink, but jumped as he startled her with his touch once more, grabbing her wrist again and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"There's more," he said, matter-of-factly, as he studied her face. She nodded in response, tears threatening to well in her eyes again. "You'll tell me?"

"Someday," she said, her voice dry. He nodded, accepting her response. His light touch traveled up her arm as he gently stroked her soft pale skin. His hand traveled up her arm, across her shoulder and up her neck as he gently stroked his thumb across her chin. She smiled at his tenderness before grabbing his hand and moving it away. She squeezed his fingers before letting go. He fought with himself over the temptation to draw her into him, to kiss her worries away, but he could read her fragility in her features and didn't want to scare her off.

He ducked his head at her, before turning to head to the door. He picked up his jacket off the stretcher and carefully reached for the door, turning to look at her one more time before exiting. She smiled at him, and that blush returned to her cheeks, bolstering his sense of confidence. The door shut quietly and Ellie turned to the work of cleaning up after the bustle of the day, distracted by thoughts of passionate kisses, strong hands and fiery contact, some of her skin still trembling at the memory.


	11. Chapter 11

Daryl returned to the house late in the evening, not necessarily being avoidant, but not in any hurry to return home. A detailed discussion with Rick about his poor luck filled up his afternoon. Rick reminded him yet again the foolishness of continuing to try and find Dwight and his men, especially on his own. He did not want to lose Daryl to this, but Daryl was like a dog with a bone. Dwight and his men had been wreaking havoc on the Alexandrians for weeks, interfering with their runs, taking hostages, and they were pretty well convinced they had something to do with the breach of the wall. Daryl had been trying to track them unsuccessfully and it was beginning to grate on his nerves that he could not catch these guys. It was clear they were being watched closely, that Dwight's team had some sort of intel on the group, but they were very careful about covering their tracks. More recent conversations between Daryl and Rick had them wondering if there was someone amongst them who was providing information, though neither of them were anxious to admit to that as a plausible reason.

He returned to the house tired, sore, and frustrated. All he wanted to do was wash up, grab a quick bite to eat, and then head out to the garage to work on his bike, and get some of that frustration out. He tried with great difficulty to ignore the voice in the back of his head that kept telling him to find Ellie and talk to her. She was patient, she wasn't going anywhere. It would probably be wise to be in a clearer mindset before he approached her, he thought. So he shook off that inner voice and pushed into the house, shedding his jacket stiffly and making his way to the kitchen where Eric and Aaron were eating dinner.

"Hey, you're back. How you feeling?" Aaron asked, scanning the stiff form that stood at the end of the table. His eyes widened as he saw the bloodied bandage on Daryl's arm. "You alright?"

"Yeah, just some scratches…I'm gonna grab a quick shower, save me some of that spaghetti?"

"Sure. What happened out there?"

"Just an accident is all. No big deal."

"Did you…?" Aaron asked, knowing of Daryl's mission, just as invested in catching Dwight after a tough run a couple of weeks ago where they lost a couple people.

"No," he said, shaking his head. He gestured upstairs and headed up to wash up. He had a quick shower, soaking his bandages to make it easier to take them off, then patched new bandages over top of his wounds, threw on some clean clothes and headed back downstairs. The guys were still at the table as he sat down beside them, grabbing a plate of now cold spaghetti and shoveled some in his mouth. Eric and Aaron watched him eat in silence, his body language clearly telling them not to probe too deeply. He had been staying at their place for some months now, and they were able to read him pretty easily by this point. His moods were pretty predictable, and they knew when to push and when to leave things be.

He continued to eat as Eric cleaned up the table, finishing off his meal with a swig of cola, before bringing his plate and glass over to the sink and dusting off his hands.

"Ellie eat already?" he asked, trying to appear nonchalant, noticing she had not been at the table, but not wanting to draw attention to his awareness. Eric and Aaron shared a knowing glance that Daryl caught, looking at Aaron skeptically. "What?"

"Uh, nothing," he said, doing a poor job of trying to avoid the question.

"What nothing?" Daryl asked as Eric suddenly became very involved in the washing up of the dishes, avoiding Daryl's searching gaze. "What's up?" his brow furrowed in concern as his gaze traveled between the two.

"Ellie's gone," Aaron said, after a moment of hesitation, clearing his throat. He winced at the delivery, thinking it sounded a little cold, and unsure how to elaborate.

"What do you mean gone? Saw her earlier at the clinic," he commented, furrowing his brow in confusion. He drew his bottom lip in between his teeth and began to chew fervently as he tried to digest the information.

"She, uh…. Decided to find her own place," Eric said, briefly glancing at Daryl to judge his reaction before ducking his head back and turning his attention back to the dishes.

"What? When?" he asked, staring at Aaron, waiting for an answer.

"A couple days ago. She asked me to help her find a place for herself. Said she had taken advantage of our hospitality for too long and was feeling bad about it. I didn't think too much about it. Just sad to see her go. We like her a lot," he said, gesturing at Eric and himself.

"Oh," Daryl muttered, nodding, unable to think of anything to say. He didn't know how much the men knew about what had happened between him and Ellie, and didn't want to say any more than he had to on it. He cleared his throat uncomfortably, and edged out of the kitchen, heading towards the garage.

"She took the townhouse beside Rosita and Spencer," Aaron added as he was heading out the door. Daryl paused, and nodded in acknowledgement before entering the garage. Aaron and Eric exchanged knowing looks as the familiar clattering rose up from the garage. The noise didn't last long, as both men expected. They could hear the outer door slam shut as Daryl headed out.

The two remained silent as they worked through the dinner dishes together in unison, until Eric broke the silence, laughing to himself.

"You owe me, the Carolina's, next run." Eric smirked at Aaron, referring to their license collection as he flung soapy water at him as Aaron picked up one of the dishes to dry. Aaron just laughed and shrugged in response.

"Yeah, yeah. You were right."

* * *

Daryl didn't even know what he was doing there. His legs had moved of their own accord, carrying him out of the garage and down the street before he could even decide whether he should be going. Before he could come up with a reason why he should or shouldn't go to her, he was outside her door, pacing on her porch. He chewed absently on a fingernail while he decided whether he was going to knock. There were a couple of lights on in the front of the house, giving him the impression she was still awake. The front door opened as he was mid-stride, startling him, as a warm glowing light cascaded from the opening.

Ellie peaked around the door, smiling subtly at his nervous stance, her eyes taking him in from head to toe. Her gaze stoked a flame in his gut that had never truly gone out from the other night. Her grey eyes were crystal clear in the reflection of the light, sparkling like a smoky quartz, and they lit up when the corners of her mouth lifted in a smile. Her long dark hair fell across her shoulders and down her back in loose curls, begging for him to reach out and grab a lock to wrap around his fingers.

"Hey. Everything okay?" she asked softly, leaning her head on the door frame.

"Uh, yeah. Yeah. Sorry, didn't mean to disturb you."

"It's alright. What's up? You need me to look at your dressings?"

"Uh, no… no I put fresh ones on not too long ago," he said, avoiding her gaze as he rocked back on his heels, unable to be still.

"You wanna come in? Or you wanna hang out here all night?" she asked, smirking as she held the door open wider, casting more light onto the porch. His eyes were drawn to her, unavoidably, as the orange glow cast a warmth over her exposed skin. He looked her up and down, taking in her lean long legs, exposed to mid-thigh before cotton shorts blocked his view. A loose sweater hung off her curves, having slid down one shoulder. She crossed her arms below her chest, leaning against the door frame invitingly. He exhaled, and drew his bottom lip in between his teeth, chewing absently. He nodded a silent reply, and she backed up, holding the door open for him.

He hesitantly stepped over the threshold, and she closed the door behind him. Without directing him, she headed down the hall to a small living room, expecting he would follow her. Which of course he did, the sway of her hips like an anchor in a stormy sea. He walked through the unfinished front room and down the hall, where the kitchen opened into a small room with a couch, and a couple of chairs. He watched her, mesmerized by her graceful confidence as she moved with ease around him, grabbing him a drink from the kitchen and placing it on the coffee table before settling herself on the couch. She sat with her knees drawn up, and crossed her ankles. He stood in the doorway, studying her, taking her in from head to toes, before he eased into the room and sat at the other end of the sofa, putting a bit of space between them, though if he wanted to, he could reach out and touch her. Though he tried to, he could not rationalize the pull to be near her, the draw was instinctual. She gazed at him, her steel grey eyes penetrating his protective walls with ease, and he didn't even care.

"So what brings you here?"

"You left," he said, a statement, not a question, though she understood the implication.

"Yeah."

"Guess I wasn't the only one being avoidant," He quipped, throwing her earlier implication back at her.

"No, I guess not," she said, grinning sheepishly. "Wasn't sure how long you'd want space for, or if you'd even want to see me, so I thought I'd make it easier."

"Thanks?"

"No problem," She replied, laughing softly. Her eyes sparkled when she laughed, he noticed, their color lightening to an icy grey when she was joking. He lost himself in their depth for a moment, jarred back to reality as she stretched her legs out across the couch, her toes grazing his thigh. "It was time. I'm sure Aaron and Eric won't even miss me."

"They will. I will," He said, his voice gruff as his throat went dry at the admission.

Ellie smiled, a warm relaxed grin that washed over him like a warm bath. Any tenseness in his muscles eased and he relaxed into the sofa, draping his arm across the back. He closed his eyes as he leaned into the soft cushions, and let his mind wander momentarily.

When he opened them again, he found her studying him with that same grin on her face, and he felt suddenly vulnerable and uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and met her eyes, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly, to reassure himself or her, he wasn't sure.

"So."

"So."

"You wanna tell me about that knife wound?" she asked, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly as she focused on him. Her head tilted slightly as she examined him. He responded by drawing in his lower lip and chewing on it, his jaw ticking rhythmically.

"I was close. But not close enough," he said, breaking the silence, taking his time to respond. He was barely able to contain the edge of frustration on his voice.

"Doesn't look that way to me. Looks like you got too close," she commented, her eyes narrowing.

He looked down at where his wound was, hidden by dressings and his tee shirt, and shrugged dismissively.

"What were you looking for on your run?"

"A trail. Told you. Came close."

Truth was the guy that swung at him had gotten away before Daryl could grab him and question him. He didn't feel like admitting that though, as the failure was sour on his tongue.

Ellie shook her head, furrowing her brow in concern. She studied him carefully, looking for clues he wasn't giving her, before sighing and leaning into her hand. She subconsciously tucked her toes underneath his thigh, warming them as she felt the muscle tense, then relax.

"Is it a necessary risk? To keep looking for them?" she asked, surmising what his recent runs had been about. She had patched up the last few run crews with Denise, aware of what had been happening outside the walls. That supplies were beginning to thin was also an indication that runs had not been overly successful as of late. She had yet to tell him that her last inventory of the clinic was looking pretty grim. They would need meds soon, and suture supplies if things didn't change.

"Gotta. We need supplies."

"Maybe you need to change your tactic then," she suggested, shrugging her shoulders. He looked at her, furrowing his brow as he contemplated her suggestion, absently chewing his lower lip. "What does Rick think?"

"He thinks I should back off. Doesn't want me making any unnecessary risks. Thinks they will out themselves sooner or later. We just need to double up on our runs," he explained, chewing over it, making a face that said he didn't necessarily agree. "What you thinking?"

"Doesn't really matter, it's just an opinion," she said, shaking it off.

"Naw, let's hear it. You've been out there, you know what you're doing."

"You wanna catch them, you need bait," she said, shrugging. He looked at her, studying her face for a moment, considering her statement, as she fumbled with her hair, suddenly subconscious. He nodded as he mulled over her suggestion. "I do agree with Rick though," she added, causing him to pause, his eyes flashing at her. "You shouldn't be taking any unnecessary risks. Alexandria needs you," she said softly, her concern for his welfare evident in the softening of her voice.

"Alexandria, huh?" he asked, raising a brow as he grabbed her feet, which she had been unaware she was tapping rhythmically while her toes were tucked underneath his thigh. He pulled them into his lap and began massaging the soles gently. His thumbs dragged along the bottom of her feet, finding knots and gently working them until she relaxed under his touch. She sighed subtly, and sunk into the couch, her muscles loosening with the warmth from his skin on hers.

"Okay fine, not just Alexandria," she replied, after relishing in the attention for a few moments, her eyes narrowing as she caught his side glance at her. He watched her sink into the sofa, her muscles relaxing, her head leaning back into the cushion as her eyes closed, enjoying his touch. His hands worked their magic on her feet, and then traveled up her ankles to her calves. She could hardly stifle a moan as he kneaded her tight muscles. "Shit," she muttered, sinking down further on the couch, giving him more access to her legs as he worked. He worked silently for a few moments before his hands stopped moving, and she groaned. "Don't stop. You sure know what you're doing," she said, grinning. His deep blue eyes lit up with a mischievous spark as he looked at her.

"I wanna hear you say it," he said, suddenly confident as his gaze narrowed on her.

"Say what?"

"Why don't you want me going out there?"

"What?"

"You don't want me out there, looking for Dwight. Why?" he said, his drawl thick when he said the word 'why'. He squeezed her ankles, prodding her to answer.

"I don't want you to get hurt," she said simply.

He raised an eyebrow, challenging her to elaborate.

"Fine. I care about you, you ass. Happy? It kills me to see you put yourself at risk like that. If you didn't come back, I just… I'd have no reason to stay here," she ended softly.

"Well that's not true. You got plenty of reasons to stay here," he said, smirking as his hands began to move again, gently rubbing her calves, driving her crazy with his careful touch.

"It's not the same," she responded, her gaze wistful as she gave him a half grin. "Everyone here is nice, and I feel very welcomed… I'll stay, but it would always feel a little bit less than, you know?" he smiled at her, his hair covering his hooded gaze as his head dipped.

He knew what she meant, he felt it too. Couldn't name it, wouldn't name it, this inexplicable pull that made him feel supremely confident and incredibly nervous at the same time. After all he'd seen, all he'd been through, he finally had that feeling, that there were moments that you just had to go with, and take for what they were worth. You could only fight for so long, and he had fought, desperately at times. Maybe it was time to do something else. Time to look at living, again, and for the first time. He had never really had that option before all this, or during. Her gaze offered him something he never considered within his reach. For whatever reason, whether it was his gut, or animal instinct, or that voice in the back of his head that sounded an awful lot like a stubborn blonde telling him to have faith, he was going to give it a try.

His hands made their way slowly up her legs, caressing her knees, gently grazing the soft skin underneath them, before travelling up to her thighs. Her gaze was far off in thought as he massaged her gently, his thumbs grazing over her skin with fleeting touches. His eyes darkened as he focused on his hands traveling up her thighs, reaching the hem of her shorts and grazing his fingers underneath them. Her gaze returned to his face, and her eyes narrowed as her mouth turned up at the corners. His hands rounded to the back of her thighs, where his touch changed to a firm grip as he pulled her towards him, yanking her down the couch. She yelped quietly at the movement, her arms landing above her head as she landed back on the couch, laid out for him as his eyes traveled the length of her body, greedily taking her in, his tongue darting out from his mouth to lick his lips. His gaze landed back on her legs as he worked slowly on the toned muscles, pushing the hem of her shorts up. His thumb grazed over a pink scar that traveled from the top of her thigh to her inner thigh, marring the soft delicate skin. His eyes darkened, a look she had seen glimpse of before, and again she had the thought that this look should give her pause, or strike fear, but it didn't. The fact that he was angry about what had happened to her brought her a strange measure of comfort.

"Tell me," he said, his voice gruff and tight. Something in his voice was commanding, yet carried with it the weight of the concern he had for her.

"Daryl…," she started, hesitating, biting her lip until it blanched.

"I need to know. You never need to tell me again. But I need to hear it. I need to know what you went through," he said, his grip on her thighs firm but reassuring, squeezing gently then stroking the length of her legs across his lap, his touch attempting to soothe her. As his hand traveled back up her leg, he traced the length of the scar repeatedly until she squirmed under his touch. She moved her hands from above her head, and covered her face, rubbing her temples in small circles before pushing her hair away from her face.

"It's been a long time. I went to counselling, moved across the country, changed my whole life. I didn't want it to define me, or be hostage to it." She added, her brow furrowed as her eyes met his hesitantly. She drew her legs from his lap and sat up, facing him, crossing her legs underneath her and leaning forward.

"It's just something that happened. I don't know why. He never said. Never spoke when it happened, never said anything at the trial. He never once said why. What I said, what I did. I will never know. That's the worst of it. Not the scars, ugly as they are. I want to know why he followed me home. Why he held a gun to my head and pushed me into my apartment. Why he beat me, tied me up, raped me. I asked. And asked. His parole hearing was why I came back. I wanted to know. I yelled and cried and he never said one thing. And when his parole got denied, that fucker hung himself. I will never know," she said, her face going red as she rubbed her neck. Her voice was low, and she avoided Daryl's intense gaze as he studied her. She struggled through pauses, taking her time to talk. He wanted to reach for her, touch her, sooth her, but she looked like a skittish animal that would bolt at his touch. So he waited.

"I worked really hard to let that go. I think that's why I wanted to be by myself after all this went down. I was trying to put it away, accept that you don't get answers to everything, and you gotta live with that. It will never be easy, and every day I look in the mirror and I think about it. Can't not. 12 stab wounds, 62 days in ICU, another 18 after that on the ward. 6 months of physio. That's all of it. It's ugly." She said, her voice cracking as she spoke, her voice cold and removed. She absently rubbed the back of her neck as she spoke. He looked at her, concern evident on his face.

"What do you want to hear Daryl? That he followed me home, attacked me at my door and dragged me into my apartment? That he stripped me, beat me, tortured me? How it felt when he touched me? That he forced himself on me, repeatedly? That when he came inside me he panicked and stabbed me so brutally I can never have kids? That I can still see him, when I close my eyes at night, after more than 9 years? I'm just grateful it's not every night anymore. At least I can sleep now, most nights. Like I said, ugly," she finished, cringing, turning her head to the side, and rubbing her chin on her shoulder. Her skin trembled and she brought both hands to her lap, methodically flexing her fingers.

As he had the other night, he reached for her hand, and grabbed her wrist. He gently drew his thumb across the delicate soft skin on the inside of her wrist. She furrowed her brow as she watched his thumb move back and forth across her skin, her composure beginning to crumble.

"Hey," he said softly, as tears welled up in her eyes and her breathing quickened. "Look at me." He said, tilting her chin, bringing her eyes up to meet his. "There's all kinds of ugly in this world, there was then, there is now. Doesn't define any of us."

She nodded delicately, swallowing hard as she tried to reign in her emotions.

She shifted next to him on the couch, leaning into the cushion beside him, her head finding his shoulder. Her hair fell loosely between them, grazing the skin on his arm, and he reached over, grabbing a few strands and twirling them between his fingers, relishing in the softness before dropping the strands. Her knees were drawn up and she leaned into his side, comforted by his warmth and silence as he let her collect herself. He dropped his hand, landing it solidly on her knee, where he stroked her skin softly, trying to help ease the tremors that cascaded underneath her skin. His touch was soothing and incredibly gentle, despite rough, calloused fingers, rhythmic in their circling, helping her focus and regain her composure.

"I wish…," Daryl started, shifting uncomfortably next to her, his muscles stiffening up in their stillness.

Ellie held her hand up to his lips before he could finish his thought. Her brow furrowed as her head dipped, her eyes shaded by her dark lashes.

"There's nothing that can change it," she replied softly. "I'm okay, really." Daryl arched an eyebrow in reply, unsure if he believed her or not. "I swear. It's hard to talk about, I'll never be comfortable with that, ever. But it happened, I can't change it, you can't change it. I see it in your eyes. You want to hurt him, and I get it. I do to. But we don't get to," she said, caressing his cheek softly. He grabbed her hand and kissed her palm, and then her wrist, gently, before letting go. "Thank you, for caring enough to want to do something."

"El,…I would do anything for you," he admitted, his voice cracking with unspoken feeling. His eyes narrowed as he glanced at her, before dipping his head.

"I know," she replied, her voice soft as a whisper. The weight of their admissions hit her hard, and she took a deep breath in, swallowing hard. She stared at him as she processed what they were saying, without actually having said it. She knew, this man would have her back, no questions asked, as she would his. This was it, this was what home felt like, something she had longed for since her grandfather had passed away, and long before that. Looking at him, looking at her, felt like coming home after a long journey. It was almost too much.

The moment was broken when Daryl shifted stiffly on the couch, wincing as he moved his left arm up. His shirt was clinging to his rib cage, blood seeping through the bandage. Ellie gasped when she saw it, swearing softly and jumping up off the couch. She grabbed Daryl's right hand and pulled him up off the couch, trying to be gentle, guiding him down the hall to a bathroom. She flicked on the light after opening the door and pulled him in behind her.

"Let me see," she said, lifting his shirt gingerly. When she exposed the bandage, she saw that it was saturated in fresh blood, but not dramatically so. "Can you take this off?" she asked, gesturing at the shirt.

Daryl hesitated, looking at her blankly for a moment while he contemplated. His throat got suddenly dry, and he swallowed a hard lump, as his gut sank. She had just been so vulnerable with him, exposed and raw, and here he was, standing in her bathroom, facing her, fighting the urge to keep covered. He felt like absolute shit for feeling that way, but years of self-consciousness were difficult to suppress. She had stripped his shirt off the other night, in the heat of the moment and he was so caught up in what she was offering him that he didn't even think about what he was exposing to her.

"You want me to help you?" she offered, misreading his reluctance. After a moment he nodded absently in response, and she grabbed the hem of his tee shirt, and gently guided it over his head, her fingertips gently grazing his skin, leaving a trail ablaze with heat in their wake. He stiffly shed the shirt onto the counter, and lifted up his left arm to look at the dressing, scrunching up his nose.

Ellie's brow was furrowed deeply as she looked at the bandage, her fingers feeling around it gently, prodding the skin and then laying her palm flat on his chest while he breathed raggedly, trying to control his body's reaction to her touch.

"I'll be right back," she whispered, jogging out of the bathroom and down the hall, collecting a small bag from the kitchen and coming back to the bathroom.

She pulled out a stethoscope, wrapping it around her neck, and a stack of gauze, placing the gauze on the counter. He watched her move clinically, with purpose as he stood in front of her. She popped the ear pieces in her ears and held the bell of the stethoscope up to his chest, listening carefully. Her pulse pounded in her ears as she assessed him, her brain working overtime thinking she had missed something earlier when she had patched him up.

"What…?" Daryl muttered, finally finding his voice.

"Sorry, I thought maybe I missed something," she whispered, dropping the stethoscope in the bag, and reaching for the tape holding his dressing down, her fingers trembling with fear. She peeled the tape back gently, pulling the dressing away from his skin. She inspected the stitches and noticed a small area where a trickle of blood flowed out of the wound, satisfied that everything else looked okay. She reinforced the area with extra gauze, and taped it down firmly. Her fingers continued to tremble as she pressed the tape down on his skin, wrapping it around his rib cage onto his back. Her fingers grazed one of the long jagged scars on his back, causing her to pause and look up at the mirror behind him. Daryl froze, looking away from her, chewing on his lower lip rhythmically. Her eyes widened as she saw the reflection of his thrashed back in the mirror. She gently traced the long scar as far as she could reach, as her eyes welled up. She drew in a ragged breath, and turned her gaze to his face, taking in his pained expression as he avoided her gaze.

"Hey," she said, reaching up and turning his face to hers, forcing him to look at her.

"I told you," he said, his voice ragged, "this world was as ugly before as it is now."

Ellie looked at him, concerned, before nodding in understanding. His body language and his pained, glazed expression told her he would not voice the source of his scars. She would not ask him, she decided. A darkness flashed over her grey eyes as she surmised the source, a look similar to the one he had given her. He saw it flash momentarily, and the fierceness behind it startled him. She shook her head as her fingers continued to gently caress the long scar, and composed herself. She finished taping the bandage, dragging her fingers over his skin, relishing the contact. Once she was finished, she reached up and caressed his cheek gently. Leaning up on her toes, she kissed him gently on the corner of his mouth, while her thumb stroked his cheek. He stood still while she touched him, unsure of what to do. She lowered herself back down, and looked up at him from under her dark lashes, and smiled softly.

"I'll be right back," she said softly. She gathered her bag and dropped it off in the kitchen before running up the stairs. He wandered out of the bathroom, following her up the stairs, his confidence wavering as he swallowed another hard lump. He found her in the biggest room upstairs, a large bed taking up most of the room. His throat went dry when he looked at the welcoming soft looking bed, as she surfaced from the closet, smiling at him, a dark grey tee shirt in her hands.

"Here, hope this fits. Whoever was here before left some stuff behind," she said softly. She helped him pull the soft cotton over his head and down his torso as he moved stiffly. The bulkier bandage on his rib cage made movement a bit more difficult. Her hands lingered on the smooth material, feeling the rapid heartbeat through his chest. She smiled softly, trying to ease his discomfort, as his hands eventually traveled around her torso to settle low on her back.

"You can stay, if you like," she whispered, breaking the silence as they stared at each other. She saw the nervousness flash over his gaze momentarily, before he nodded silently in response. His hands traveled absently up her spine, through her hair, and he pulled her towards him, holding her gently. She tucked her head under his chin, drawing in a deep breath, the smell of musk and pine and dirt and distinctively Daryl Dixon invading her senses. "Get comfy, I'll go lock up," she said, pulling her head away reluctantly and looking up at him. His eyebrow arched at the order, as he barely contained a smirk. He liked her bossiness, he decided, very much.

She disappeared briefly, setting the locks and turning out the lights, before returning to the bedroom with a couple of glasses of water. He had kicked off his boots and jeans, and sat on the edge of the bed in a tee shirt and boxers, unsure of what to do with himself. She smiled when she saw him, and he watched her walk gracefully into the room, mesmerized by the sway of her hips. She put the water on the side table and climbed into bed, taking an elastic and tying a loose braid in her hair. She settled into the soft mattress, and turned on her side, facing him. He remained sitting on the side of the bed awkwardly, before gaining a small burst of confidence, and laying down beside her. Smiling, she curled up next to him, laying her head on his chest and closing her eyes, breathing him in and settling into a relaxed state. After laying like that for a few minutes, his arm wrapped around her, pulling her tighter to him as he buried his nose in her hair, taking a deep breath of coconut and vanilla. Sleep overtook them both easily, easier than ever before.


	12. Chapter 12

The first rays of morning sun cast a soft yellow glow through the curtains in her room. She rolled over on her side as the light hit her eyes, shielding them from the intrusive glow. She reached subconsciously across the bed, her fingers flexing at the absence within the linens. She cracked an eye open and lifted her head off the pillow, glancing at the empty space on the bed, and furrowed her brow in confusion as she surveyed the room. She tried to ignore the brief flash of disappointment that slipped through her defenses, and sat up in the bed. It was then that the smell of fresh coffee hit her senses like an alarm clock. She dragged herself out of bed and shuffled down the stairs in search of the source. She made her way into the kitchen, following the blissful scent and found Daryl, leaning against the counter, drinking from a large mug. She smiled at the site of him, as his eyes met hers. He looked her over, her hair disheveled, stray strands sticking out from her braid and framing her face messily. Her eyes were still puffy with sleep, her features soft and relaxed.

Silently she reached around him and grabbed a mug, pouring herself a cup of black coffee and savoring the aroma, bringing it up to her nose, before taking a sip. The corners of his mouth lifted in a small smile as he watched her savor the liquid. She leaned against the counter next to him, settling into companionable silence.

"Didn't mean to wake you," he muttered as he glanced at her.

"You didn't, sun did," she replied, smiling into her mug. "Thanks for making coffee."

Daryl nodded silently, unsure of what to say. He shifted stiffly next to her, his arm grazing hers.

"You feeling okay?" she asked, noticing his guarded movements. He nodded in reply, but it didn't stop her from placing her coffee mug on the counter and turning to face him. "Can I?" she asked, gesturing to lifting up his shirt. He helped as best as he could, inching the fabric slowly up to reveal the dressing on his rib cage. She ran her hands along the tape, making sure it was sealed, satisfied that it had held overnight and there was no new blood. Her fingers traced the tape gently, her fingertips making contact with his skin, leaving a hot trail behind, before she lowered his tee shirt and smiled, nodding her head. He watched her carefully as she began to pull away, her gaze lowered, her lashes shielding her eyes, and he reached up and caught her chin, pulling her towards him, his lips seeking hers, grazing them gently at first, before deepening the kiss, tasting the fresh coffee on her tongue as it caressed his. She pulled away slowly, the corners of her mouth lifting.

Ellie looked at Daryl, her eyes searching for something. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he raised an eyebrow, almost in challenge.

"What?" he asked, clearing his throat. Her gaze made him restless, eager to move, in all directions at once. She smiled softly, noting he was rattled but holding it together. It would take some time to be used to this sort of closeness. The space felt confined, cloyingly so, adding to his restlessness. He struggled with that feeling as his gut was anchored to her presence and did not want to leave despite his body's messages.

Ellie smiled softly, as she reached around him and grabbed her coffee, taking a big sip as she settled against the counter across from him, the small amount of distance feeling vast in the tiny kitchen. She could read the energy seeping out of his skin and thought a little physical distance would be less overwhelming with the hurricane of emotions they were both caught up in.

"Big plans for the day?" she asked softly, hugging her mug close to her and staring into the black abyss, watching the liquid swirl in circles. She glanced up at him from under her lashes to see him watching her, his arms crossed over his torso.

"Gonna check the snares, do a perimeter sweep," he said softly, his voice gruff as he raked his eyes over her form. She seemed relaxed against the counter, and he took in her lean form, from her head to her delicate toes. "Could use some company," he added, his eyes lingering on her long, lean legs, the pale skin begging to be caressed, before drawing them up to meet hers. The look on her face made him glad he had asked. Her eyes lit up and her smile grew larger than he thought he had ever seen it, and it damn near crushed him.

"Really? You wouldn't mind me tagging along? It would be great to get in some bow practice, it's been a long time," she said, scrunching her nose up as she thought about the last time she used her bow. _When they collected the car to come to Alexandria_. Weeks ago. "I'm feeling rusty," she added, rolling her shoulders. His mouth lifted into a subtle smile as her enthusiasm took over like a snowball down a hill. He just nodded in response, unsure of what exactly to say. "What time?"

"Soon," he said, lifting his eyes to look out the window. Clouds were rolling over the morning sun, subduing the brightness. "It's still early enough, might catch something. Clouds are coming, it may rain if we wait too long," he added. Her eyes were bright as she nodded her head, downing her remaining coffee in one large swig, swallowing hard.

"Give me a few minutes, I'll throw some clothes on. Could meet you by the gate," she said, pulling the elastic out of her hair and using her fingers to brush out her braid and smooth out her bed head. Daryl watched her, mesmerized by the subtle movements of her fingers running through her hair as she casually leaned against the counter. He rubbed the back of his neck subconsciously as he studied her movements. Her long dark locks fell softly over her shoulders, and he had a sudden urge to close the gap between them and run his fingers through them. She smiled when she caught the look in his eyes. "What?"

Going with the urge in his gut, he stepped forward, and brought his hand up, gently sweeping her bangs across her forehead and tucking her hair behind her ear, following the locks down with his fingers as they gently caressed her shoulder. His hand traveled down her arm, to her fingers, where he took hold of a couple, pulling her gently towards him. He leaned in, causing her to tip her head back slightly, and found her lips with his. She smiled against him, before returning the kiss fervently. Her hands found their way around his neck, her fingers gently raking through his hair as she pulled him closer, the kiss picking up momentum as it deepened. His hands found her hips, where they settled comfortably, his thumbs grazing the skin under the hem of her sweater, sending electric shocks straight to her gut. He gently pulled her closer to him, as her body curved against his while their tongues danced. His teeth grazed her lower lip, biting gently before he pulled away from her. Her lips were swollen and dark pink, her breathing ragged as he looked her over, his eyes dark with lust, a small smile of satisfaction lingering at the corners of his mouth. She let her hands trace a line over his shoulders and down his thick biceps, taking a deep breath, the scent of him invading her senses. She savored his closeness for a moment before he pulled back, his eyes still on her, enjoying the ravished look on her face.

"Meet you by the gate," he muttered, gruffly, clearing his throat. Ellie smiled and nodded as his hands dropped from her waist, and he leaned in and kissed her gently on the forehead before hesitantly heading towards the door. Ellie followed him down the hall, held the door open for him, leaning against it as she watched him walk back towards Aaron's, looking over his shoulder at her before he crossed the empty quiet street. She closed the door and leaned against it, taking a couple of deep breaths to clear her head before heading upstairs to get dressed.

She quickly made the bed and washed up, throwing on a pair of jeans and a sweater over a tank top, followed by a fitted jacket. The weather had changed, the clouds now persistently covering the early morning sun. That coupled with the cool air of fall having set in a couple weeks ago, meant layers would be needed. She grabbed her gloves, cut off at the fingers so she could work her bow better, and a scarf, winding it around her neck. Her hair was clipped up in a braid that encircled her head, keeping her bangs out of her face. After lacing up her boots, she threw her bow and quiver over her shoulder, and strapped her knife to her belt. It felt a bit foreign to be preparing to go out. It had been weeks since she had been outside the walls, settling into the community and keeping herself busy with the clinic and other tasks inside Alexandria. She felt safe, protected, like she could sleep at night, if it weren't for pesky nightmares every now and then. She was actually looking forward to challenging her perspective and reminding herself what it was she had to fight through to get to this point. That and she was anxious to use her bow again. Something about the draw of the string, and the loosing of the arrow brought such clarity to her thought process, it was almost meditative, the focus required to perform the task.

Closing the front door behind her, she headed out into the quiet street. It was early in the day, watch at the gate would be changing shift soon, but not many people would be awake yet. She made her way to the main gate of Alexandria, now guarded 24/7 with three people, instead of two, since the increase in interference with Dwight's group. She nodded at Heath, back on watch for the first time in a couple of weeks, and he smiled and greeted her. Daryl sauntered up, meeting her at the gate and nodding hello to Heath. His crossbow was slung over one shoulder, a small satchel over the other.

"You taking a guard shift?" Heath asked Ellie, looking confused. Ellie smiled and shook her head.

"Naw, not today," she said, winking at him. "How you feeling?"

"Oh, so this is a house call, of sorts then?" he replied, laughing softly. "I'm feeling good. Doing good," he said, nodding his head. He reached over and helped Daryl pull the heavy metal gate back exposing the barred gate behind it. "Why you out here so early?" he asked, watching Daryl pull the metal gate back enough they could walk through it. Tara and Abraham casually looked down from their perch high up the lookout, Tara nodding and smiling at Ellie.

"Ready?" Daryl asked, nodding, his hand finding her back absently guiding her towards the gate.

"Going out for a bit, need some fresh air, some practice," she said, gesturing to her bow. "I'll see you later," she said, smiling softly at Heath as Daryl and her walked through the gate. Heath, Tara and Abraham watched them walk beyond the walls and down the road together, looking at each other with expressions of confusion shadowing their features. Abraham shook it off quickly, returning to his cigar, and his watch. Tara shrugged at Heath and smiled, and Heath just shook his head as he closed up the gates behind them.

They walked in companionable silence down the road, before Daryl took a left and led her off the road into the bush and sparse forest that outlined the community walls. They would walk a couple of miles out and follow a general crescent shape as they checked snares and traps laid out for small game. They wandered quietly, enjoying the company and the brisk morning air. Ellie enjoyed watching him track the game trails, following along quietly to try not to disturb his concentration. Every now and then he would point out different tracks, signs of animals nearby, and how to read them. She smiled when he talked, listening and taking in his knowledge. Other times they would walk in silence. She would look around at the quiet calm scenery around her, finding peace in the forest. They encountered few walkers, taking them out with ease, Ellie eager to stretch muscles and reflexes she had let get lazy over the past few weeks.

After walking for about an hour, they came across a small clearing in the trees. Ellie walked through the trees, her eyes widening as she took in the expanse of space, looking around and listening closely for signs of intrusion. When she didn't hear people or walkers or animals, she stepped slowly into the clearing. Daryl followed behind her, his steps quiet, almost mute, despite the dry underbrush.

"This is awesome," she said, barely able to maintain her enthusiasm. She unzipped her jacket, and dropped her quiver and bow on the ground carefully, as she walked forward towards a lone tree that breached the line across from her. When she got to the tree, she ran her hand over the bark, before pulling her knife out of it's sheath and carving an "X" about five and half feet up the trunk. Daryl watched her mark the tree, his eyes narrowing with curiosity.

"Good?" he asked, smiling at her as she peeked at him over her shoulder, her grin wide with anticipation.

"This is perfect, how did you know?" she asked.

"Been here a time or two on rounds, it's a good spot," he said, the corner of his mouth twitching as his ears went a bit red at the tips.

"Thanks for thinking of it," she said, smiling as she sauntered over to her bow and arrows. She grabbed them, and then looked back at the tree, trying to eyeball the distance, walking backwards until she found a spot to her liking.

Daryl watched her with curiosity as she shed her jacket, tossing it on the ground with her quiver, and picking up her bow and an arrow.

"You may wanna move, I haven't done this in a while," she quipped, her mouth curving into a grin as she knocked the arrow. He smirked at her comment, taking a couple of small steps back out of her line of sight. She laughed softly, her eyes lighting up. "That's it? Like to live dangerously I guess. Lucky for you I can stitch up a wound," she joked, aiming the arrow at the mark and pulling back on the string, relishing in the feeling of stretching out the muscles in her arms.

"Yeah, lucky for me," he replied, smirking at her. He glanced around the clearing, listening for any disturbances and hearing nothing. He turned his attention back to Ellie as she loosed the arrow, a frown forming on her face as it planted itself firmly in the tree, about 6 inches above the "X" she had carved.

"Well shit," she said softly, scrunching her nose and furrowing her brow in frustration. Daryl smirked, enjoying her facial expressions and the swearing. She glanced back at him, and furrowed her brow deeper in mock anger at the expression on his face. "You think this is amusing?" she asked.

"Very," he replied, laughing softly while she knocked another arrow. She let out a puff of air in frustration as she stretched the bow string tight, and made to aim again. Daryl took the opportunity of her distraction to take a long lazy gaze at her figure. Her legs were planted firmly in the ground, jeans hugging her curves in all the right places. Her sweater, a dark navy color that contrasted nicely with the paleness of her skin, hugged her upper body, accentuating her curves, the hem sitting just above her belt, her white tank top peeking out from underneath.

"Enjoying yourself back there?" she quipped, her eyes shifting slightly to glance at him before returning to their target. He wasn't even trying to hide his admiration of her form, as he stood with his arms crossed across his chest. She could feel the weight of his gaze on her and it made her cheeks flush with heat.

"Definitely," he replied with a smirk.

Ellie adjusted her aim and loosed her second arrow, this one landing about 3 inches below the first, but still not close enough to her target for her liking. She scrunched up her nose and huffed as she shook her head. As she reached down for a third arrow, she felt the spattering of a few fat rain drops hit her arms. She glanced up at the sky, the clouds darkening as the rain began to fall.

"You still got a couple traps left?" she asked, looking at Daryl from over her shoulder.

"Yup. Not far from here," he replied, gesturing to the area he still had to check.

"Why don't you check them out, I can wait here for you," she said, as a few more rain drops splattered her.

Daryl furrowed his brow, not keen on the idea of leaving her by herself. He glanced around the open clearing, looking for signs of anything dangerous.

"How far are they?" she asked, trying not to roll her eyes at his sudden protectiveness. She knew he was aware she had survived two years on her own, she wasn't about to remind him of that. Yet.

Daryl chewed on his lip as he worked it out in his head. He remained hesitant to the idea of leaving her alone, feeling a sudden sense of responsibility for bringing her out of the walls with him. He would not forgive himself if something happened.

"Not far," he replied, his voice gruff and tight.

"You'll be able to hear me, right, if I yell?"

Daryl nodded, his eyes darkening. He gnawed on his lip, fighting the urge to pace as his limbs became suddenly restless. Ellie studied him, her eyes raking his features, uncomfortable with the fact that she was making him upset.

"Okay, let me just grab my arrows, and I'll join you then," she said, conceding to him. Her eyes softened as she walked over to him, and grabbed a couple of fingers from his left hand, squeezing them reassuringly. The rain continued to fall sporadically, starting to leave a damp trail on their clothes. She smiled at him softly as he slowly brought his gaze to hers, uncertain and lacking confidence. Her eyes met his and held his gaze for a moment before she leaned up and kissed him softly. She handed him her bow before walking back to the marked tree to yank out her arrows.

She went to pull out the first arrow, when she heard him come up behind her. He grabbed the arrow and yanked it out of the tree, and then grabbed the second one. She could feel his fingers gently graze the back of her neck before she turned around to face him. He held her jacket and quiver in one hand, the arrows in the other, her bow slung over his shoulder with his own. His hair was damp, water droplets falling off his bangs and running down his cheeks. His blue eyes met hers and he stared at her intently for a long moment.

"I…," he started, clearing his throat. Ellie held up a couple of fingers, placing them gently on his lips, stopping him from continuing.

"No need," she replied, smiling softly. He kissed her fingers gently, before she moved them, marking a trail across his chin, and down his neck, before settling her hand below his collar bone. "We should get moving before we get drenched," she added, looking up at the clouds. His eyes darkened momentarily at the thought, causing her to lift the corner of her mouth. "What?"

His gaze became intense with heat all of a sudden, and he dropped their things, walking forward, causing her to back up until she hit the trunk of the tree. His hands found her face, the rough callused palms framing her face. His thumb dragged across her lower lip, his touch hot, leaving her wanting when he took it away. He replaced it with his lips over hers, kissing her firmly, his hands moving from her face, down to her neck, fingertips gently burying themselves in the base of her hairline. His kiss deepened as she responded feverishly, dragging her bottom lip between his teeth before his tongue delved into her mouth. She moaned in approval, her tongue entwining with his as her hands made their way to the back of his neck, raking her fingers through his wet hair. His kiss set her on fire, igniting a yearning deep in her gut to feel him pressed against her. She pulled him close and arched herself to him, pressing her chest into his. She gasped when his mouth released hers, his lips traveling across her chin, leaving their searing mark as he laid a trail to her neck. He kissed her neck gently, as she leaned her head aside, giving him full access, grazing his teeth along the sensitive skin. She yelped when his teeth hit her skin, making a sound that spurned him on more, his eyes darkening with lust as he continued to rake his teeth over the soft skin, and then follow it with his tongue. His hands traveled down her torso, resting at her hips, his fingers splayed across her lower back. She sucked in a ragged breath as he worked his way back up to her lips, finding them and diving into them hungrily. Their tongues danced as the kiss heated deep in their bellies. She could feel him hardening against her, causing her to ache with a need she thought long dead.

She moved to press against him as close as she could when a snap of a branch caused them both to pause instantly. Her eyes searched the clearing, finding the walker who was ambling towards them, teeth snapping and breathing raspy and irregular. Daryl whipped his head around, staring down the walker, his breathing ragged. He grumbled under his breath, causing Ellie to glance at him and smirk, before his hands left her body, cold air hitting her in a rush as he approached the walker, unsheathing his knife and sinking it swiftly in its cranium. She absently rubbed the back of her neck as she watched him, standing over the walker, fingers clenched on the knife handle so hard his knuckles were white. He brought his gaze to hers, his eyes filled with lust and longing. She lifted the corner of her mouth in a soft smile, arching an eyebrow and shrugging her shoulders. She reached down and picked up her jacket, slipping it on quickly as the raindrops quickened, falling heavily, cooling off the heat that was drifting from her skin. She picked up their things, and joined him by the walker, handing him his crossbow and narrowing her eyes at the dead mass on the ground before linking her fingers in Daryl's and squeezing. Without a word he led her out of the clearing and south towards the last two traps, the rainfall echoing in the trees as they took shelter in their branches.

Daryl walked her back to her place, ignoring the stares from the lookouts at the gate and the people on the street as they walked close together, drenched from the rain, cheeks flushed from a combination of the cold, wet weather, and the heat of their exchange. They wandered up the stairs, happy to get under the cover of the porch roof. Ellie turned to face him as he stood behind her, smiling up at him as her eyes met his.

"You look like a drowned rat," she said, giggling softly. She brought her hand up and ran her fingers through his wet locks.

"You too," he replied, picking up a loose tendril of her long dark hair and squeezing the water out of it. She had taken her braid down as they walked back to Alexandria, when it got too wet and heavy to tolerate anymore.

The rain continued to fall, the skies dark and the clouds heavy with water. Ellie brought her gaze up to the sky, taking a deep breath in as she watched the droplets fall. A sudden shiver overtook her relaxed form, from the top of her head to the tips of her toes, and her teeth began to chatter as her lips quivered.

"Should get inside, warm up," Daryl said, nodding towards her door.

Ellie glanced back at the door before returning her gaze to his face, studying him.

"You too," she said, her voice husky, surprising herself with her forwardness. She raised an eyebrow in challenge as her eyes met his, her lips curling subtly. He matched her gaze, his eyes narrowing at the challenge. He grabbed her hand, linking his fingers with hers, and yanked her forward, as he opened the door of her house, dragging her behind him as she let out a small yelp, followed by a giggle.


	13. Chapter 13

_Thank you everyone for your patience, I hope it will be worth the wait. I promise there is much more to come and this story is not done yet, so I hope you will continue to be patient. I will do my best to resume updating more regularly, now that life has somewhat settled and work has tapered off. Thank you all for your reviews, I appreciate every one of them, and love that you are enjoying the story :). Cheers, xoxo Byn_

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The air in the room was thick with suspense and nervous energy. Ellie had unflinchingly followed Daryl as he led her up the stairs, his steps sure footed and confident, his grip on her hand solid and secure. Now they stood across from each other in her room, both unsure of who was going to initiate the next step. Ellie breathed in deeply, trying to slow her rapid heartbeat as Daryl raked his darkened gaze from the top of her head, to her toes, before settling his eyes on hers. Her hands traveled up to her loose wet locks subconsciously, and she began to ring out the rain that had collected in them. He reached up and grabbed a few strands, gently squeezing, before a smirk settled in on his lips. Before she could say anything, he left her side, collecting towels from the bathroom and returning, tossing one on the bed and taking the other and opening it up, gently collecting her wet hair and squeezing the water into the towel. She studied him as he gently wrung out her hair, admiring the care he took with her. Satisfied with her hair, he tossed the towel on the bed and turned to her wet clothes, which clung to her body. A shiver traveled over her limbs as the cold began to set in.

Daryl unzipped her coat, removing it for her and tossing it on floor. He then grabbed her navy sweater by the hem, and pulled it over her head, tossing it aside with the coat, leaving her standing in front of him in a damp white tank top and wet jeans. He grabbed the towel off the bed, and slowly rubbed the feeling back into her cold arms, her skin tingly with every drag of the towel. She reveled in the feeling, before grabbing the towel out of his hands.

"Your turn," she said, her voice catching in her throat. He smirked in response, his eyes narrowing as he grabbed the other towel off the bed and rubbed it briskly over his wet hair.

Ellie tossed her towel aside, and moved closer to him, unbuttoning his jean jacket, peeling it off his muscular shoulders as he dropped his towel. She glanced up at him, meeting his eyes, seeking approval, before she gently lifted his shirt up, skimming his bandage, and dragging it over his head. Her hand gently grazed the bandage she had put in place the night before, checking the tape was still secure. She studied it nervously, before she dragged her gaze back to his. He was watching her intently, his gaze hooded and dark. He was waiting for her to move, his hands gently caressing her arms.

Taking a step back from him, she held his gaze as she lifted the hem of her tank top, pulling the garment over her head, leaving her in her wet jeans and a black lace bra. Fighting the tremors from the chill as well as the nervousness, she took a deep breath, steadied herself, and unbuckled her belt, unzipped her jeans, and wiggled out of them, kicking them aside. She stood in front of him, her breathing ragged, as she fought to keep her arms at her side, and not wrap them around her middle.

Daryl sucked in a deep breath, taking in the sight in front of him. She was a vision, albeit a slightly damp vision. Lacy bra and panties standing out against her pale soft skin, unblemished aside from the scars. He took her in from head to toe, his eyes darkening with lust as they raked over her exposed figure, his mouth going dry as he contemplated his next step. He held still until he could see her shifting on the spot. He could see the self-control she was using to stand there, exposed and on display for him, and it made his admiration and lust ramp up to a hundred.

He closed the distance between them, his hands landing on her hips, his fingers splaying across her lower back. He pulled her close, causing her to arch her back and tip her head, so she could meet his gaze. Her breasts pressed against his chest, her breathing heavy as he studied her face. He could see the mixture of boldness and nervousness in her eyes, warring with each other. He was fighting the same battle with his own nerves. Her hands settled on his arms, gently caressing the hard muscle, as he leaned over her, his lips finding hers.

It was gentle at first. Lips on lips. He wanted to express his gratitude for her boldness by being gentle and caring. That's how it started. Her soft lips met his, welcoming them as he covered her mouth with his, before they gently parted, as she let out a soft sigh, relaxing into his touch. He took advantage of the moment, parting her lips further as his tongue made its way into her mouth, meeting hers. His hands traveled from her waist, framing her face as their tongues danced, his tongue darting in and out of her mouth, lapping her up like he was savoring her. She melted into him, her hands traveling up his arms, across his broad shoulders, lacing her fingers through his hair, her nails raking his scalp lightly.

He led her backwards to the bed as he captured her bottom lip with his teeth, dragging them along the sensitive skin. She moaned with approval as he devoured her lips. Her legs hit the bed, and she let him lay her back gently as he held himself over her. Her breathe caught in her throat as he tore himself away from her lips. His gaze held hers as he tried to catch his own breath, checking to make sure she was certain before he went any further. Her gaze was welcoming, her eyes dark with lust, and a small smile formed on her lips.

"You tell me, if I go too far," he whispered, his brow furrowing. "I'll stop."

"You better not," she replied, pulling him to her and attacking his lips before rolling him over and straddling him. He was caught off guard by her sudden burst of confidence as he lay underneath her. Her hair fell over her shoulders, creating a dark, silky curtain that framed her face, a mischievous grin settling in on her lips. She tucked her hair behind her ears as he took in the view on top of him, his mouth salivating. His hands found her thighs and he dragged his calloused fingers across her soft skin, caressing her milky flesh. He took his time admiring her form as her hands massaged his pecs. His touch traveled up her torso and around her back, undoing her bra. She let it fall before tossing it aside as his hands came up to cup her small breasts. His thumbs grazed her nipples, causing them to plump up at the attention.

She licked her lips and moaned as he turned his attention to her breasts, leaning up and taking a nipple in his mouth, circling the bud with his tongue while his other hand worked on the other nipple. She arched her back, giving him more access as he circled her nipple with his tongue, and grazed his teeth on the sensitive tip, causing her to gasp. He brought his gaze up to hers, the heat between them palpable, as he pulled away from her breast and pulled her down so his mouth could meet hers. Their tongues met, swirling together between hot breaths as he flipped her over onto her back.

Once again on top of her, in control, he wasted no time. He devoured her lips before breaking away and laying a trail of kisses along her jaw and down her neck. His teeth grazed her sensitive skin causing her to gasp and moan. She was so reactive to his touch it drove him mad with lust. He was ready to see her writhe under his touch, the thought spurring him to action as he made his way down her body. He left a hot trail from her neck to her breasts as he focused his attention on the light pink buds that ached for his touch. His mouth enveloped one nipple while he rolled the other between thumb and finger as Ellie began to writhe on the bed. Her hands caressed his shoulders as his muscles flexed underneath her touch, her fingertips tracing a hot trail up and down his spine.

He continued along his path across her abdomen, determined this time not to stop unless she asked. It would be a difficult task but if she asked him to, he would stop for her. Her pleasure and comfort was his utmost priority. He gently drew his hands across her soft flat belly, caressing each scar. She held her breath as he trailed kisses over each one, letting out a ragged breath when his hand found hers and he linked his fingers with hers. He brought his gaze up to meet hers as she watched him carefully, waiting for her to say something, but she only nodded. He dragged his hands down her sides, cupping her ass before pulling her underwear off. He caressed her toned thighs, his fingertips gently trailing down her long lean legs, kissing her ankle before dragging his stubbled chin across the smooth skin of her calf. She giggled softly and tried to pull her leg away, but he held her firmly. He grinned in return, winking at her before he continued dragging his cheek across her skin, causing her to squirm. He kissed his way up to the apex of her thighs, where her breath hitched momentarily before his lips landed on her mound.

She was wet and warm and ready for him. His mouth found her clit and he sucked it gently, rolling his tongue around the nub. She gripped the sheets tightly, letting out an expletive, as he massaged her clit with his tongue, writhing under him. He gripped her hips firmly as he devoured her with his tongue, moving down and taking long strokes from her opening to her clit. As he moved his focus back to the sensitive nub, he eased one finger into her tight opening, slowly pumping in and out. When he found her g-spot she bucked off the bed, gasping, her hand raking through his hair, holding him in place. He continued to suck on her clit, while his finger caressed her walls as they clenched around him, as the climax spasmed through her. He didn't move until she relaxed into the bed, breathless and gasping. He smiled at himself, seeing her spent as she recovered, her hand still on the back of his head. He kissed and then nipped the inside of her thigh with his teeth, before moving up the bed, holding himself over her. He kissed her neck gently, making his way along her jawline until he met her lips, where he kissed her deeply. She could taste herself on him as their tongues danced. He grinned against her lips as she kissed him passionately, absorbed in her re-activeness.

"Proud of yourself," she commented. Grinning, and still slightly breathless, her hands traveled down his torso, to the waistband of his jeans, unbuckling his belt and undoing his jeans. She pushed them down his hips, pulling his erection out and stroking the length. "Your turn," she said again for the second time that day, more seductively than the first, as she held his gaze, an eyebrow raised.

He closed his eyes as she touched him, stroking him rhythmically. He held himself over her, his muscles tensing as he tried to reign in his control while she worked his shaft as he thrust into her hand. Her leg wrapped around his hip, pulling him close to her as she guided him to her opening. She was still sensitive, her skin tingling, and she gasped as he rubbed the head of his cock on her opening before slowly sliding into her. Her breath hitched as she took in his length. He held his breath, reveling in the tight warmth that surrounded him, before he opened his eyes and met her gaze. Her hands traveled up his back, over his scars, pulling him down to her, their skin touching, the heat and sweat mingling. She reached up and took his lips in hers, kissing him deeply, pulling him to her as he backed his hips up and thrust hard and deep into her.

His breath quickened with each thrust, her walls clenching around his shaft, and he knew he wouldn't last long. He ducked his head into her shoulder as he thrust into her, her legs wrapping around his waist pulling him deeper into her. She gasped with each thrust, a soft 'yes' escaping her lips each time he filled her. He moved one hand down between them as he kissed her along her clavicle, finding her nub and rubbing in a circular motion, causing her breath to hitch. He brought her to climax again quickly, the sensation building from his kisses and touch, causing her walls to clench around him, milking his cock to climax as he came inside her. She gasped as his hand moved from in between them to caress her silky thigh, as he collapsed on top of her, his breathing ragged. He buried his head in the nape of her neck as he fought to catch his breath. Her fingers moved gently through his hair as she worked on her own breathing.

Eventually his breathing slowed and he shifted off of her, kissing her shoulder one more time before rolling onto his back. She draped one arm above her head, the other across her abdomen, suddenly subconscious again, even though he wasn't even looking at her. He caught the movement, and he grabbed her hand off her stomach, linking his fingers with hers.

"Hey," he said, rolling onto his side. "You don't need to cover them." He said, furrowing his brow as he studied her face. He held her gaze until she nodded in reply. He brought her hand up to his mouth, and kissed her fingers gently before letting go.

"Same goes for you," she replied softly, her hand caressing his face before trailing her fingers lightly down his back. He ducked his head, avoiding her gaze, before nodding in agreement. He rolled back onto his back, letting out a deep breath.

They lay in silence for a while, their breathing slowing in unison as they stared at the ceiling. Ellie rolled over onto her side, kissing him softly on the shoulder before sitting up. Her hair cascaded down her back, falling delicately over one shoulder as she stared down at him before shimming to the edge of the bed. Daryl looked at her questioningly as he hiked up his boxers, kicking off his jeans.

"Hungry?" she asked, as she pulled on her underwear and pushed up off the bed, wandering over to the dresser to rifle through a drawer for a tee-shirt. He watched her hips sway as she walked away from him, mesmerized by her movements as she pulled the shirt over her head, lifting her hair and gathering it, twirling it and laying it over her shoulder.

"I got it," he replied huskily, moving off the bed to meet her in the middle of the room. He kissed her gently on the forehead, his hand grazing down her back, landing on her ass and gently cupping it. She bit her lower lip, the corners of her mouth curling into a grin as she brought her gaze up to meet his. The intensity of his gaze bore into her, and she raised herself on her toes, leaning up and kissing him softly on the corner of his mouth before nodding. She turned and watched him walk out of the room before heading to the bathroom.

He returned shortly with an assortment of things, basically whatever he could scrounge up from her meager pantry supplies. When he sauntered into the room he found her sitting on the bed in her tee shirt and underwear, knees drawn in to her chest. She smiled at him earnestly as he flopped onto the bed next to her, offering her the plate as he placed two cups on the night stand.

"You okay?" he asked, looking her up and down.

She nodded silently in response, ducking her head. She grabbed a piece of apple he had cut up, and took a small bite out of it, watching him closely as he settled in next to her.

He watched her eat, slightly hypnotized by her movements, as he wondered to himself about what happened to his quaking nerves. He anticipated that he would begin to feel the need to escape, now that the heat had cooled, his nerves always driving his need to move away from uncomfortable situations. But nothing about this seemed anything other than normal, and natural. He wanted to be near her, wanted to savor every minute of being in her presence. She had exposed herself to him willingly, and he soaked it all in. He was drawn to her, she was like an anchor in a rocky ocean, and he would hold on for dear life if he had to, to keep from drowning. He chewed absently on a piece of jerky as he studied her.

She ate silently, as she tried to quell the nervous storm that was building inside her gut. She began second guessing herself, wondering if acting on this impulse would cost her. She had said to him that she wanted to feel something good for once, and she had meant it. And Lord if this wasn't good, she didn't know what was. But good things don't always last, and she began to get ahead of herself, struggling with the thought that if she lost this, it would end her. The apple she was chewing suddenly lost it's flavor, and she swallowed hard.

"Hey," Daryl said, swallowing the chunk of meat he ripped off the jerky, noticing her vacant gaze, "where are you?"

Ellie shook her head, closing her eyes.

"I'm here," she whispered, as she drew her hand through her hair, shaking off whatever thought lingered in her brain. She glanced at him, giving him a half smile as she finished her apple.

Daryl studied her, his eyes narrowing.

"Nothin's gonna change," he said, his deep voice reassuring her.

Ellie nodded slowly in response as she let the words sink in. She took a deep breath, before grabbing another piece of apple, letting herself slowly relax in the bed next to him. He waited till she appeared more settled, watching her closely, before resuming his jerky. They settled in to a companionable silence, refueling their energy. Eventually Ellie stretched her long legs out in front of her, crossing them at the ankle. Daryl took the opportunity to draw his gaze down the length of her legs, from her milky thighs to her dainty toes, unable to resist the view. Ellie caught him staring, and smirked, wiggling her toes for him.

"Better?" he asked, bringing his gaze back up to her face, seeing her smirk, and grinning. She nodded in reply, her eyes softening as she studied his face. "Good," he responded, tossing the plate aside and pulling her close, his hand caressing the soft skin of her thigh as he kissed her deeply. She settled in underneath him, her hands gently touching his neck, as she dragged a finger across his jawline. His eyes darkened as he drew her in, sucking on her lower lip, drawing her lip between his teeth.

"Wherever you went, you need to let it be, okay?" he whispered, staring intently at her. She nodded, closing her eyes momentarily before meeting his gaze and bringing her lips up to his in response. She pulled him down on top of her, savoring the closeness, taking what he would give her. She tried to focus on the good, and letting herself get lost in the feeling of what "good" could give her, pushing her hesitation aside, hoping it would not rear it's ugly head again. At the very least, not in this moment.


End file.
